Survival Is The Key
by Chris Carver
Summary: The apocalypse... Whenever someone mentions that it's coming, most people either laughed them off, or locked them up. When the apocalypse finally arrives, and the walking dead roam, how can a group of people survive?
1. Chapter 1

**Survival Is The Key**

**The apocalypse... Whenever someone mentions that it's coming, most people either laughed them off, or locked them up. When the apocalypse finally arrives, and the walking dead roam, how can a group of people survive?**

**Anne Marshall belongs to AquaDestiny'sEmbrace (Many thanks to Aqua for letting me use her)**

**I do not own the Walking Dead or its characters. I do own Chris.**

**Chapter 1: Near Death Experience And Leaving**

**Chris's POV**

"Chris." My father called for me.

"Yeah?" I replied.

"Why don't you go ask Anne if she wants to come with us?" He asked, and I immediately started blushing.

"Y-Yeah. I could a-ask her if she wants to come." I said sheepishly.

I knew he did that to see me blush. He and my step-mom, Coleen, both knew how much I liked her. I would give him hell when we came back from our supply run. I walked over to Anne's tent, and opened the flap.

_"She's so cute when she sleeps… No. Shut up, dumbass."_ I thought to myself. I picked up her can of Pepsi and poked a hole in it with one of my Sais. As soon as it hit her face, she started sputtering.

"What the hell, Chris?" She furiously asked me. "I was wondering if you would like to come with me and my dad on a quick little supply run?" I asked shyly. "Yeah, just give me a minute to get ready." She replied. "Okay." I said then walked out of her tent.

A few minutes later, she came out of her tent, dressed and armed.

_"Damn, she's hot… SHUT UP!"_ I thought to myself, then hid my face so she wouldn't see me blush. We walked over to my parents, when I looked to see Anne had a shocked look on her face when she saw my step-mom with my dad. "Coleen's coming on the supply run with us." I explained to her and she nodded in understanding.

"Let's get going." My dad said and all four of us left to find supplies.

/Two Hours Later\

We were still looking for supplies when I heard Anne's voice.

"I FOUND SOMETHING!" She shouted and I ran to her. I saw she had some Spam in her hand.

"Nice going, Anne!" I praised, and she smiled at me. We then met up with my step-mom, my dad, and Anne showed the Spam she found. I showed the can of beans that I found. After that, we walked back to the community when I heard a twig snap. I stopped in my tracks and drew Anne's attention.

"What's wrong, Chris?" She asked me. My dad and Coleen stopped as well.

"You guys hear that?" I asked, when I looked behind Coleen and went wide eyed. "COLEEN, DUCK!" I said and she obliged. I threw one of my Sais at the lurker and stabbed it in the head. The lurker fell to the ground and I pulled my Sai out of its head. But, unfortunately, Coleen got pinned down by another lurker. They then started coming out of the forest.

"Dad, throw me a grenade." I said, but he refused. I ran to him and Anne, leaving my step-mother to be devoured when I tripped on a root. I turned over to my back to see a lurker jump on top of me.

After a brief struggle, I managed to kick it away from me, then stabbed it in the head before it could bite me. I ran back to the community to see doors were about to close. I made it in just before they did and when I got to my feet, I glared at my 'father'.

"WHY DID YOU LEAVE HER?!" I furiously asked him.

"She was a danger to us all." He replied and I was now beyond furious.

"We could've saved her." I said, tears beginning to stream down my face.

"One day, you'll understand." He said. I was tempted to punch him square in the face, but didn't. I just stormed off to my tent.

_"That's it. In a few days, I'm outta here."_ I thought to myself.

/One Week Later\

**Anne's POV**

I was getting worried about Chris. He hadn't left his tent for a week, and I knew I wasn't the only one who was worried, but I was confused by why I was more worried than anyone. I felt like I wanted to be by his side to help him and I didn't know why. I decided to try and get him to come out of his tent. I finally made my way to his tent and opened the flap. I saw him busy packing some of his things into his backpack. I quickly closed the flap of the tent behind me and decided to get some answers.

"What are you doing?" I asked him. "Packing." He replied. "Obviously, but why?" I asked. "Because I'm leaving. Don't bother trying to stop me. I'm leaving tonight." He replied, and I was shocked.

"Would you object to me coming with you?" I asked, causing him to stop and look at me. "What?" He asked. "You heard me. I don't owe that snivelling bastard loyalty anymore. So, I'll ask you again. Would you object to me coming with you?" I asked him.

**Chris's POV**

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Anne Marshall, the girl I was in love with was asking me if she could tag along with me. I decided to answer. "By all means, come with me." I replied. She smiled then went to her tent to pack. _"Wow. I did not expect that."_ I thought to myself as I resumed packing.

/Later That Night\

I tiptoed over to Anne's tent, praying she was still awake. I opened her tent and saw she was still awake. "You ready?" I asked her, and she nodded her head. "Okay. Let's disappear." I joked, hoping to earn some kind of acknowledgement. I managed to get her to giggle and decided that was as good an acknowledgement as I'd get.

We made our way outside of the community when I stopped before entering the forest, turned around to the community and rose my middle fingers to it and stuck my tongue out as well. I then turned to Anne to find her giggling at the sight. "Damn, that felt good." I said before we kept walking through the forest.

**That's chapter one. I hope you guys like this story. Chris and Anne will end up together, but not until later on in the story. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Lives Saved**

**Anne's POV**

I woke up to Chris sniffling. I looked to my left and saw he wasn't there.

_"He must be outside."_ I thought to myself before I placed my bandana back over my eye and walked outside. My hunch was right and I saw him sitting by the fire when I decided to comfort him.

"Hey, is it okay if I sit with you?" I asked him and, without looking, he nodded his head. I sat down next to him and allowed him to rest his head on my shoulder.

"Why did he do that?" He asked me.

I didn't know what to tell him as a reply without stirring him up.

"We could've saved her, Anne. Tell me you agree with me, please." He said.

"I completely agree. I should've gotten to her, but he wouldn't let me. He wouldn't even let me help you." I said.

He was still crying. "I know how bad it hurts, Chris. But I'm here. I'll never leave you. I promise." I said, making him smile.

"Thanks. You just said all the right things." He said and I actually blushed. "Okay. Let's grab our stuff and keep going." He said as he walked over to the tent, undid it, and packed it up. We then threw our backpacks over our shoulders and kept walking.

I looked past him and saw a lone lurker.

"Let me use one of your Sais." I said, and he handed me one. I then crept up behind the lurker and stabbed it in the back of the head. I pulled the Sai out of the lurker's head and handed it to Chris. He wiped it clean, and then handed it back to me.

"Take it. I can manage with just one." He said, and I then accepted and took the Sai.

Chris and I kept walking through the woods when I suddenly heard a girl scream.

"Did you hear that?" I asked him and he nodded his head.

"Someone's in trouble." He said as we started running to where the scream came from.

We finally made our way to where the scream came from to find a dog latching its teeth into a young girl's arm. I drew the Sai Chris gave me and ran to help the girl.

I made my way to her only to find a rock and gave it to the girl.

"Here. Use this." I said, handing her the rock. She took it and hit the dog with it. Once she was free, she kicked the dog and it was impaled.

Chris came running to help when he saw the dog impaled. "I'm sorry, boy." He said as he mercy killed the poor animal. While he did that, I looked at the girl.

"Are you alright?" I asked her.

"Uh-huh." She replied as I helped her to her feet.

"I'm Anne. This is Chris. What's your name?" I asked her.

"I'm Clementine." She replied.

Chris then took a look at Clementine's arm. "We'd best find a doctor to treat this." He said and I nodded my head. "Will you be able to walk, Clem?" I asked her, and she shook her head. Chris then picked her up and carried her. We then kept walking.

As Chris continued walking with Clem in his arms, I looked at him and noticed he seemed exhausted.

"Let me carry her." I said, and he handed Clem to me. I then remembered I had a first aid kit in my backpack. I set her down and Chris took a knee. I then pulled the first aid kit out of my backpack and immediately went to work on tending to Clementine's arm. I got the peroxide, needle and thread out and was prepared to suture her arm. I first grabbed the peroxide and looked at Clem.

"It's gonna sting. And since we're out in the open, I'll have to cover your mouth so you don't attract lurkers, okay?" I told her and she nodded her head. After I undid the lid, I placed my right hand over her mouth so she wouldn't attract lurkers.

I dipped a little bit of the peroxide onto the wound when Clem jolted in pain. "Sorry." I said to her, and she just shook her head, telling me it was fine. I then looked at Chris to see him struggle to stay awake. I was getting worried for him.

After I finished with the peroxide, I threaded the needle and placed the tip of it on Clem's wound.

"If it hurts too much, squeeze my arm." I told her and she nodded. I punctured the wound and she cringed. I looked to see her biting her lip, clearly trying not to scream. "You want me to stop?" I asked her, but she shook her head.

A few minutes later, I managed to wrap some gauze around her arm. I then looked to Chris had collapsed. I now was scared. I stepped over to him, checked his arm for a pulse and was relieved when I found a pulse.

"Is he okay?" Clem asked. "Yeah. He's unconscious, but he's alive." I replied, when I heard growling.

A group of lurkers were approaching us. "Clem, give me a hand here." I ordered and she obliged. I took his left arm and Clem took his right. We trudged along when Clem was attacked by a lurker. She struggled to get it off her, and I couldn't help her without letting Chris get devoured. Just then, a guy on an orange jacket came up and killed the lurker that had Clem pinned. I drew my Sai and threw it at another lurker.

"Hey." I said to the guy, gaining his attention. "Can you carry him while I grab that Sai?" I asked and he nodded. He picked up Chris while I ran for my Sai. I pulled it out of the lurker's head when an old man came to help us.

We managed to escape from the lurkers when we slowed to a walk. "Is this kid-?" He asked, and I shook my head.

"He's unconscious, but he's alive." I replied.

"Okay. I'm Luke. This is Pete." The guy said. "Nice to meet you both. I'm Anne Marshall. This is Clementine. And the one in your arms is Chris." I said.

"What exactly happened to you guys?" Pete asked. "Chris and I left from Bill Carver's camp when we ran into Clem. She was attacked by a dog when we found her. After that, we kept walking when I noticed Chris was getting exhausted. After he handed Clem to me, I tended to her arm. Then we ran into you two." I replied.

We then made our way to where Luke, Pete, and others who left Carver's camp were hiding. I explained everything I explained to Luke and Pete. Carlos, one of the escapees welcomed us with open arms. Rebecca, one of the females, was completely skeptical about us.

"Give her some time. She'll adjust." Nick told me. _"I hope so."_ I thought to myself. My worry for Chris kept growing. _"Do I like him?" _I asked myself.

**That's chapter two. Will Anne realize her true feelings for Chris? Find out as the story progresses. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Exhaustion**

**Anne's POV**

I was pacing outside the room Chris was in, really worried about him. Then Carlos came out and I immediately looked at him.

"How is he?" I asked.

"He was so exhausted, his body shut down. In a day or two, he'll be just fine." Carlos replied.

"Can I go in and see him?" I asked, and he nodded his head. I then walked past him, opened the door, and saw Chris was indeed out. I sat down next to his bed, and sighed.

_"He's so handsome when he sleeps… Wait, what am I saying?"_ I thought to myself when I felt myself blush.

Then I had an idea. I remembered he told me he loved my singing. I then picked up my guitar and was deciding what to sing. I made my decision and began strumming my guitar.

_When the days are cold_

_And the cards all fold_

_And the saints we see_

_Are all made of gold_

_When your dreams all fail_

_And the ones we hail_

_Are the worst of all_

_And the blood's run stale_

_I wanna hide the truth_

_I wanna shelter you_

_But with the beast inside_

_There's nowhere we can hide_

_No matter what we breed_

_We still are made of greed_

_This is my kingdom come_

_This is my kingdom come_

_When you feel my heat_

_Look into my eyes_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_

_Don't get too close_

_It's dark inside_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_

_At the curtain's call_

_It's the last of all_

_When the lights fade out_

_All the sinners crawl_

_So they dug your grave_

_And the masquerade_

_Will come calling out_

_At the mess you made_

_Don't wanna let you down_

_But I am hell bound_

_Though this is all for you_

_Don't wanna hide the truth_

_No matter what we breed_

_We still are made of greed_

_This is my kingdom come_

_This is my kingdom come_

_When you feel my heat_

_Look into my eyes_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_

_Don't get too close_

_It's dark inside_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_

_They say it's what you make_

_I say it's up to fate_

_It's woven in my soul_

_I need to let you go_

_Your eyes, they shine so bright_

_I wanna save that light_

_I can't escape this now_

_Unless you show me how_

_When you feel my heat_

_Look into my eyes_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_

_Don't get too close_

_It's dark inside_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_

I finished singing when I heard someone clapping. I turned my head to the doorway to see Carlos's daughter, Sarah, standing there.

"You're a really good singer." She said.

"Thanks." I said before she left to go back to her room. I then turned my attention back to Chris.

"Hey, Anne." I heard someone say. I turned to see Clem standing in the doorway.

"Hey, Clem." I said, waving to her to sit down. She obliged and sat beside.

"He still out?" She asked.

"Yeah. Carlos said in a day or two, he should be fine." I replied.

"I heard a guitar being played. Was it you?" She asked and I nodded my head. "Sarah said she heard you playing." She added.

"Yeah. She told me I'm a good singer." I said. Clem nodded in agreement. "Carlos told me she has an anxiety disorder. That's why he keeps her in the cabin all the time." Clem explained.

/The Next Day\

I went into Chris's room to see how he was doing. When I opened the door, I saw him on his feet, stretching his arms and legs out. I smiled wide when I saw he was awake. I ran over to him as soon as he stopped stretching and hugged him.

**Chris's POV**

I blushed the deepest red possible when Anne hugged me. When she pulled away from me, I saw her blush as deep a red as I did. Then I saw Clementine come in.

"You're awake." She said to me.

"Yeah, I am. How's your arm?" I asked.

"Better than it was." She replied.

"Good." I said.

"I take it Anne already introduced me." I said and she nodded her head. Then a Hispanic man came into the room.

"Ah. You're awake." He said to me.

"Everyone loves stating the obvious around here, don't they?" I asked, chuckling a little.

"What is your last name?" He asked me, and I was afraid of how he would react.

"Carver." I replied, waiting for him to point a gun at my head. He surprisingly didn't. Instead, he nodded.

"My name is Carlos." He said.

"I know. You're one of the people that fled from that piece of shit I called a father. I respect you for that." I said, and he nodded again.

"Why did you leave?" He asked me.

"Remember Coleen, my step-mom?" I asked. "Yes, of course. Why?" He asked me. "He left her to die." I replied before explaining the supply run incident.

"I'm sorry." He said after I finished explaining.

I just shook my head.

"Don't be. I now know that man as the snarling bastard he is." I said.

"Have you met everyone yet?" He asked me. "No, I haven't." I replied. He then ushered me to follow him. I obliged and left the room with him.

When Carlos and I made our way downstairs, we saw everyone was surprised to see me up and moving.

My friend, Nick, finally smirked. "Well, whaddya know?" Our sleeping beauty's finally awake." He joked as I walking over to him.

"Good to see you, too, Nick." I said, chuckling.

"You really had us worried." Alvin said to me.

"Sorry about that, Al." I said to him. I then looked to Rebecca. I went wide eyed when I saw her baby belly.

"How much longer?" I asked her.

"Not much longer. A few days, max." She replied.

"She's just hoping it won't be _his._" Alvin said to me. I knew who he was talking about. "It won't be. It'll be yours, Al. I'm sure of it." I said.

Anne and Clementine came downstairs with Luke. Luke grinned when he saw me standing. "Well, ain't you a sight for sore eyes?" He asked. I chuckled.

"Nice to see you too, Luke." I said.

"I was gonna go huntin'. Wanna tag along?" Luke asked me.

"Hell yeah." I replied.

"I'm coming too." Anne said. I nodded my head.

"No way." Luke said.

"She and I were my snarling bastard of a father's best hunters. She's coming with us." I said.

"But-" Luke started.

"End of discussion." I said as Anne came to my side.

Luke, Anne, and I spotted a buck elk. Luke raised his rifle, but I lowered it.

"Are you crazy? Do you wanna lure every goddamn lurker within five miles to us?" I sternly asked.

"Good point." He reluctantly conceded. I drew my Sai and threw it directly at the heart. I smirked as the elk went down.

"Well, that's dinner." Luke said. I chuckled as we walked to the animal to see it was still breathing.

"Poor bastard." Anne said. I pulled the Sai out of the impact point and slit the elk's throat. After that, I turned to my Anne and Luke.

"So, who's carrying this delicious meat back?" I asked.

"I vote Luke." Anne said.

"I second that." I said.

"Why me?" Luke asked.

"Well, you're stronger than two teenagers." I said.

"Fine." Luke groaned.

We made it back in time to see the others were gathered in the kitchen.

"Hope you guys like meat." I said. With that, the elk was cooked and eaten. When that was done, we all decided to get some sleep.

**That's chapter three. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Half-Siblings**

**Anne's POV**

Chris was doing a lot better since the incident. I was glad to see him acting like his old self again. He started having fun again. When I found him in the common room with everyone except Nick and Carlos, he was demonstrating his skills with his Sai. I figured he should use mine as well as his. So when he stopped, I walked up to him and handed him my Sai. He grinned and took it.

"You guys saw how good I am with one. Now you'll see how good I am with two." He said as I took a couple steps back so as not to get hurt.

After he was done showing off, he handed me back my Sai, and I put it in a holster. Sarah seemed a little scared, so I decided to calm her down.

"Don't worry, Sarah. He only uses it to kill lurkers. So you and everyone else have nothing to worry about." I said, earning a nod from Chris.

"She's right. I'm not gonna hurt anyone with it, except lurkers, and that piece of shit I called 'Dad'." He said. I then looked at him with surprise.

**Chris's POV**

I looked at Anne to see she had a look of surprise on her face.

"You mean, you want revenge?" She asked me.

"You're damn right, I do." I replied through gritted teeth. All of a sudden, I hear Nick shoot off a warning shot.

"Who the fuck are you?!" Nick demanded as everyone came outside. Sarah stayed inside while everyone gathered outside.

"What's going on?" Anne asked. I pushed through the group to the front.

"Guys, calm down! Put the goddamn guns down!" I snapped. "Now, what the hell is going-" I started when I turned around and gasped. "CHRIS?" One of the girls asked. "TESS?! EMILY?!" I said as I recognized the girls. I then ran to hug them.

**Anne's POV**

"Wait a minute. You know these two, Chris?" Nick asked him.

"Yeah. They're my half-sisters." He replied as he pulled away, before he glared at Nick.

"WHAT THE HELL IS IN YOUR HEAD?! SAWDUST?!" He shouted at Nick, making everyone go wide eyed.

"Hey, I didn't know, okay?" Nick snapped. Chris started storming up to him and he looked like he was about to punch him.

"Easy, boy." I said as I stood between him and Nick before they could fight.

"She's right. You're not worth it." He said before walking back into the cabin.

**Chris's POV**

I slammed the cabin door so hard, I scared Sarah. I then realized my mistake. I forgot Carlos told me she had an anxiety disorder.

"I'm sorry, Sarah." I said as I knelt beside her. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay." She said as we both stood up. Tess and Emily came inside as we got to our feet.

"What happened to you two?" I asked them both. "We heard about what that piece of shit we called 'Daddy' did to my mom, so we left to try and find you. We walked for days before we spotted this cabin, and Nick." Tess explained.

"I still believe he left her to die." Emily said as she hugged me. "It's okay, Emmy. I'm here." I said as I returned the hug.

/A Few Hours Later\

Everyone was getting to know my half-sisters when I saw Nick cast an apologetic glance at me. I nodded my head, telling him he was forgiven. I then gestured to my half-sisters and he figured he had to apologize to them. He was right.

"Tess and Emily, I just wanted to say I'm sorry for pointing my rifle at you both." Nick said, earning nods from my half-sisters.

"It's okay." Tess said.

"Yeah, you were just protecting your friends." Emily said.

Nick smiled at their responses when I turned cold eyes to Carlos. He sighed as he knew he also had to apologize. "I also want to apologize for my actions." He said, earning nods from my half-sisters. He smiled as he was forgiven as well.

Anne came up to us at that point.

"Hey, Anne." Tess said. She smiled at the greeting.

"Hey, Tess. It's good to see you and Emily again." Anne said, making my half-sisters smile.

"Hey, Chris, can I talk to you, Tess, and Emily real quick? It's something important." She said to me, and my half-sisters and I rose an eyebrow.

"Sure." The three of us said at the same time. We followed Anne outside onto the porch. She stopped and turned to us. I saw her face blush the deepest red possible, which meant she really needed to get something off her chest.

I repositioned my sunglasses over my over as we waited for Anne to speak.

"Anne, you're as red as a tomato. Are you alright?" Tess asked. Anne shook her head.

"I'm just gonna say it, or I'm gonna chicken out." Anne said, and I rose an eyebrow.

"Okay. What o sot?" I asked.

"Chris, I… I think I love you." She said to me, and I was astonished. I always thought Anne liked me as a friend. I also was relieved to know that she had feelings for me.

"That's… That's good. Because I love you, too." I said and she smiled. She rushed over to me and hugged me.

Tess and Emily decided to leave me and Anne on the porch. _"Great. Nothing like sibling loyalty."_ I thought to myself as Anne pulled away from me. We then walked back into the cabin and acted normal. Tess and Emily smirked at me. I just playfully shot a glare at them.

"So, why weren't your half-sisters with you on that supply run?" Luke asked me.

I shrugged. "Tess is a little stubborn to get out of bed in the mornings. Emily is, too, actually." I replied, making my half-sisters blush.

I then shot them a look that told them I embarrassed them as payback while everyone else chuckled at what I said. I then showed my half-sisters to our room.

"Here's where we're sleeping." I said, as the girls both smiled from ear to ear. "I had Nick and Luke bring up a couple extra beds." I said to them as they dove into the beds.

Since it was getting late, I decided to get some sleep as well. As soon as I lied down on the bed, I fell asleep.

**That's chapter four. I would like to thank Tess Carver and Emily Carver for letting me use their OCs in this story. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	5. Chapter 5

**I do not own Problem by Ariana Grande.**

* * *

**Chapter 5: Embarrassment and Songs**

**Anne's POV**

_THWACK!_

_I yelp in pain as the fist makes contact with my cheek, I'm sent hurtling to the ground and land on my back. I sit up, clutching my cheek, and look up at my tormentors as they laugh, jeer, and scream insults at me._

_"Monster!"_

_"Freak!"_

_"Emo!"_

_"Abomination!"_

_"Ugly!"_

_"CYCLOPS!"_

_I clutch my head and look down._

_"PLEASE STOP! WHAT HAVE I DONE TO YOU?!" I scream._

_Suddenly, I'm pinned down by Josh. He grabs my left arm, grins, and pulls out a switchblade._

_"Time for some fun, Cyclops!" He sneers as he drags the blade of the knife down my arm. I scream in pain._

_"AGH!"_

_I hear more laughter. I squeeze my eyes shut._

_"SHUT UP!"_

I woke up, hyperventilating and sweating when I realized I wasn't being attacked by the bullies, but laying in my bed with my friends. I put my clothes on and walked to the porch when I saw the very person I wanted to talk to: Chris. I walked over to him and nudged his arm, and he looked at me.

"Hey, Anne. What are you doing up?" He asked me. I sighed. "I couldn't sleep." I lied, something I hated doing to anyone, especially the boy I loved. He just nodded in understanding but I mentally kicked myself in the ass. I then looked back inside the cabin and smiled a little. "I'm glad your half-sisters are here with us." I said. "I'm not." He joked and I playfully punched his arm while giggling.

/The Next Morning\

Chris and I walked with Clem over to Nick and Pete since Pete offered for her to go with them to check the fish traps.

"Are you sure you want me to come, Pete?" She asked him.

"I don't see why not." He replied as I knelt down to her.

"Besides, I think you could use a little space. Away from all the drama we've had recently." I told her.

"Nick, come talk to me for a sec." Chris said. The two walked away from us, and I couldn't help but worry.

**Chris's POV**

I finally stopped walking and turned to coldly stare at Nick. "Anything happens to that girl, you're done. Clear?" I sternly asked. He nodded, not at all afraid of me, since he knew I was talking about Clem. I then started to walk away when Nick stopped me. "Yeah?" I asked.

"Do you think your half-sister likes me?" He asked, and I rose an eyebrow. "Which one?" I asked, since I had two half-sisters. "Tess." He answered. I was taken aback a little, but smirked. "I'm sure she does. Last night, she and Emily kept talking about you." I replied.

When that was done, Clem walked with Nick and Pete, while Anne and I walked back to the cabin.

"What did Nick ask you?" She asked. "He wanted to know what Tess thought of him." I replied. "I think she likes him." She said, and I nodded in agreement. "Oh my God. Last night, she and Emmy wouldn't shut up about how cute they said he was." I said, earning a chuckle from her.

We made our way back into the cabin when I saw Tess and Emily were finally awake and talking to Sarah. I smirked as I realized a way to really embarrass Tess. I walked over to her and sat beside her.

"How'd it feel having sex with Nick in your dream last night?" I whispered in her ear and she immediately started blushing a deep crimson. Sarah, Anne, and Emily looked at her to see her wide eyed and blushing deep crimson. "Tess, what happened?" Emily asked. "He found out I hooked up with Nick in my dream last night." She replied, making everyone, including me, go wide eyed. "You actually did?" I asked, completely shocked. Tess then glared at me.

**Anne's POV**

"You wanna run now or later?" She asked Chris and he smirked."Preferably now." He said before he took off. She then screamed and started running after him. Sarah went wide eyed as Tess was mad at her half-brother.

"Are they usually like that?" Sarah asked and Emily and I nodded our heads.

"Any chance he has to embarrass one of us, he'll take it." Emily said. "Suddenly, I'm grateful I'm an only child." I joked. Sarah and Emily laughed while I chuckled. Everyone came running into the common room after hearing Tess scream.

"What happened?" Carlos asked.

"Chris embarrassed Tess." Emily replied. I then explained what he did to embarrass her.

"Wow. I never knew he could do that." Luke said.

"Oh, he's done worse. When he and I were at our house, before hell broke loose, he snuck into my room and stole my favorite bra. I looked around my room frantically until I saw him standing in my doorway, smirking. I then realized what happened to my bra and demanded he tell me what he did with it. He then took off running and I chased him down. He ran all around the house with my bra in his hand." Emily said. "Yeah, and then she tackled me and knocked my ass out and took the bra back. Sorry about that, by the way, Emmy." Chris said. I gasped when I saw he had a black eye. "Jesus, Tess." I said. "Hey, he needed to be taught a lesson." Tess said. Sarah then looked to Chris.

"Can you sing?" She asked him and he flashed a new level of red. "A- A little." He replied sheepishly and I scoffed. "Are you kidding me? Most everybody loved you three singing." I said, making the three half-siblings blush like crazy. "Sing something." Sarah said. "Okay. We'll do a song the three of us love." Chris said as everyone waited.

_[Tess]_

_Uh huh!_

_It's Iggy Iggs!_

_I got one more problem with you girl_

_One less one less!_

_Problem_

_[Emily]_

_Hey baby even though I hate ya!_

_I wanna love ya_

_I want you!_

_And even though I can't forgive you_

_I really want ta_

_I want you!_

_Tell me, tell me baby_

_Why can't you leave me?_

_Cause even though I shouldn't want it_

_I gotta have it_

_I want you!_

_Head in the clouds_

_Got no weight on my shoulders_

_I should be wiser_

_And realize that I've got_

_[Chris]_

_One less problem without ya!_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_[Emily]_

_I got one less, one less problem_

_[Chris]_

_One less problem without ya_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_[Emily]_

_I got one less, one less problem_

_I know you're never gonna wake up_

_I gotta give up_

_But it's you!_

_I know I shouldn't ever call back_

_Or let you come back_

_But it's you!_

_Every time you touch me_

_And say you love me_

_I get a little bit breathless_

_I shouldn't want it_

_But it's you!_

_Head in the clouds_

_Got no weight on my shoulders_

_I should be wiser_

_And realize that I've got_

_[Chris]_

_One less problem without ya!_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_[Emily]_

_I got one less, one less problem_

_[Chris]_

_One less problem without ya_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_[Emily]_

_I got one less, one less problem_

_[Tess]_

_It's Iggy Iggs!_

_Uh!_

_What you got?_

_Smart money bettin'_

_I'll be better off without you_

_In no time_

_I'll be forgettin' all about you_

_You saying that you know_

_But I really really doubt you_

_Understand my life is easy_

_When I ain't around you_

_Iggy Iggy_

_To biggie to be here stressin'_

_I'm thinkin' I love the thought of you_

_More than I love your presence_

_And the best thing now_

_Is probably for you to exit_

_I let you go_

_Let you back_

_I finally learned my lesson!_

_No half-stepping_

_Either you want it or you just playin'_

_I'm listening to you knowin'_

_I can't believe what you're sayin'_

_There's a million you's baby boo_

_So don't be dumb_

_I got 99 problems_

_But you won't be one_

_Like what!_

_[Emily]_

_One less, one less problem_

_One less, one less problem_

_Head in the clouds_

_Got no weight on my shoulders_

_I should be wiser_

_And realize that I've got (I've got)_

_[Chris]_

_One less problem without ya!_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_[Emily]_

_I got one less, one less problem_

_[Chris]_

_One less problem without ya_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_[Emily]_

_I got one less, one less problem_

_[Chris]_

_One less problem without ya_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_I got!_

_One less problem without ya!_

_[Emily]_

_I got one less, one less problem_

After they were done singing, we all decided to wait until morning to look for the others, since they hadn't returned yet. We all went to our rooms and fell asleep.

**That's chapter five. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Explaining and New Allies**

**Chris's POV**

I yawned as I woke up. The sky was a light purple, so that meant it was early in the morning...

And Nick, Pete, and Clementine STILL aren't back yet...

I got up, put on my sunglasses and headed down into the living room, seeing Alvin, Luke, and Rebecca standing there.

"Seriously, they've been gone all day!" Alvin said. "Someone's gotta go look for 'em!"

"But Alvin~!" Rebecca protested. "We'll be okay, Bec. We'll be back soon." Alvin told her before he and Luke grabbed a rifle and headed into the kitchen and out the back door.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"They're not back yet, so Luke and Alvin are going to look for them." Rebecca explained.

"Well, I'm sure they'll be back soon." I told her with a yawn.

"Tired?" She asked me, and I nodded my head.

"Yeah." I replied, rubbing my eyes to wake myself up. When I could finally see straight, I looked at her and saw she had a mischievous smirk on her face.

"Anne still asleep?" She asked and I blushed.

"Yeah. She's not exactly a morning person sometimes. If she's up before anyone, and she is bored out of her mind, she'll sneak up on someone and forcibly wake them up." I said. "Sounds like you were a victim." She said. "Yeah, I was." I said before explaining when she walked into my tent and woke me up.

"Wow. She did that to you?" She asked me.

"Yeah. I can still feel the pain from her beating me with a bat to this day." I replied.

"Sorry about that, by the way." I heard Anne say. Rebecca and I turned to see her coming into the living room.

"It's okay." I said as she sat down on the couch. She and I looked at each other and blushed. Rebecca smirked at the sight.

"How did Anne end up in your dad's camp?" Rebecca asked me. "I'll tell you if you never associate me with that piece of shit I called 'Dad'." I replied and she nodded her head.

"My half-sisters and I were on a supply run and were about to head back when Anne showed up and told a lurker was chasing her. I drew my Sai and snuck up to the lurker. I stabbed it in the head, then looked at Anne to see she was exhausted, which told me she had been running for a long time. She passed out due to exhaustion as I came back from killing it. Tess, Emily, and I picked her up and we took off back to Bill's camp. She's stayed with us ever since." I explained.

"Then my mom died, and Chris and Anne took off. Emily and I left to try to find him after we learned how he left my mom to die and decided he wasn't our father anymore. That's when we arrived here." Tess added. We looked to see my half-sisters were coming to join us. Carlos was walking down with them.

"Ever play chess, Chris?" He asked me and I shook my head. "I've played poker before, though. With my half-sisters, naturally." I said.

"Bill always was a bad poker player." Rebecca said. I chuckled.

"Luke could never beat Pete at poker. No matter what." Carlos said. "Yeah. Pete told me he's got a good bullshit detector. That's why Luke could never win." I said, earning a chuckle from the others.

Just then, we heard a knock on the door, and we all froze.

"I'll deal with it." I said as I drew my Sai and walked slowly to the door. I opened the door and pointed my Sai outside and was surprised. Instead of my "father", I saw two girls, a brunette and a blonde, standing at the door. "Who are you two?" I asked, not lowering my Sai.

"My name is Rebecca Townley. This is my friend, Jennifer Hudson." The blonde said.

"And no, I'm not in any way connected to the actress." The brunette said.

"Do us a favor, and please point that knife somewhere else." The blonde, Rebecca, said to me and I scoffed.

"It's not a knife, sweetheart. It's a Sai." I said.

"I don't fucking care if it's a salad tong. Point it someplace else." The brunette, Jennifer, said to me. I lowered it and placed it back in the holster.

"Who are you two working for?" I asked.

"We ain't working for anyone." Jennifer said. I then guessed she was from somewhere in the south.

"Where are you two from?" I asked.

"I'm from Britain, and Jennifer's from Texas." Rebecca replied.

"How did you two find this place?" I asked, and Jennifer groaned in annoyance.

"Are we almost done playing 20 Questions?" She asked and I glared at her.

"I'm making sure of a few things, that's all. There are people out there looking for us." I said.

"Well, whoever they are, we ain't with them. We're exhausted, hungry, and looking for a place to rest." Jennifer said when I looked over to Rebecca.

"You okay, Blondie?" I asked her.

"Yes, I'm just… tired." Rebecca replied.

"You better be okay. I still don't trust you two." I said.

"Don't worry about…" She started before her eyes looked droopy.

"Ah shit." I said as she fell to the ground unconscious. I tried to help her, but Jennifer stopped me.

"Don't touch her!" She said, earning my icy cold glare. "If you value her life, you'll let me take her inside. We have a doctor." I said to her with venom in my words. She then stood to the side and allowed me to pick her up.

We walked over to the couch and I set Rebecca down on it. I then ushered Carlos to come to my side. He obliged and examined her. After a few minutes, he backed away.

"Well, what's your diagnosis, Doc?" I asked.

"She's exhausted. I suggest she get plenty of rest. She can eat when she wakes up." Carlos said, and we all agreed.

/A Few Hours Later\

Rebecca was waking up when I looked over to her.

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty." I joked, earning a laugh from the others. Carlos walked over to her with a bowl of soup.

"Here. Eat up. You'll feel better." He said as she gladly took the bowl and ate the soup.

After she finished, she looked at him. "Thank you so much." She said to him and he smiled.

"Don't mention it." He said as I walked over to her with Jennifer.

"Carlos here is a doctor. He said you passed out from exhaustion." I said. We then walked over to the other girls.

"Tomorrow, we have to go find the others." Tess said, desperately worried about Nick.

"We will, Tess." I said before looking at our new arrivals. "If either of you knows how to fight, you're welcome to come with us." I told them and Jennifer nodded her head.

Once that was decided, we all went to bed.

**That's chapter six. I would like to thank I heart Lyoko for letting me use his OCs, Jennifer and Rebecca. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Unexpected Visitor**

**Anne's POV**

I yawned and stretched as I woke up. I placed my bandana over my eye and walked out of my room and saw Chris sharpening his Sai and a spare machete he found. I rose an eyebrow.

"Do you even know how to use that thing?" I asked him and he nodded his head.

"It's the same principle as a sword." He replied to me.

"Okay, if you're sure." I said when I looked out of the corner of my eye and saw someone running toward the back door.

"Someone's coming!" I said, causing those that were leaving to look at the door. We were all relieved when the door opened.

"Clem!" I shouted as she came in the kitchen.

"Where are you guys going?" She asked the others after waving to me.

"We were gonna take off to find you, Nick, and Pete. You were gone for two days." Chris replied.

"What happened?" Tess asked.

"We were attacked. Pete was bitten. Nick and I took shelter in a shed after we fled. Nick told me to come back and tell you guys what happened." Clem replied.

"Okay. We're going to find Luke and Alvin and tell them that you came back. Anne, Clem, and Rebecca, stay here and keep an eye on Sarah, please." Carlos said as he and the others walked out the door.

"Be careful." I said to Chris. "Always am." He said and I smiled.

I then sighed with sadness as he stepped out the door. I turned and saw Rebecca smirking.

"What? Do I have something on my face?" I asked and she shook her head.

"You love that guy, don't you?" She asked me, and I knew she was referring to Chris. I sighed and nodded my head in defeat.

"I love him." I replied and then saw her smiling.

"He loves you too. I can see the way you two look at each other." She said, and I groaned a little.

"I'm gonna go check on Sarah." I said. "I'll come with you." Clem said and I nodded my head.

Clem and I walked into Sarah's room and were met with a bright flash. I closed my eye when the flash hit me.

"What was that?" I asked as my vision readjusted and I saw Sarah holding a camera in her hands.

"I found this under the house. There's all kinds of cool stuff down there." Sarah replied as she handed the camera to Clem. "Take one of me." Sarah said. Clem took the camera and then Sarah backed up a few steps. "Get me in a good pose." She said. Clem took the picture.

After that, she held up a gun and I went wide eyed. "Relax. It's not loaded." She told me, then looked at Clem. "Will you show me how to use it?" She asked her.

"Sure." Clem said.

"What should I shoot?" Sarah asked, looking for something to pretend to shoot at.

"First thing you gotta remember, that is not a toy." I said.

"I know." Sarah said, then aimed the gun at Clem's head. I went wide eyed as Clem ducked.

"What are you doing?" Clem asked, and Sarah got scared.

"I'm sorry!" She said as she dropped the gun. "It's okay, Sarah. Just be careful." I said.

Just then, Rebecca came running up to us.

"What is it?" I asked.

"There's someone at the door." She replied.

"Sarah and I might know who he is. You and Clem need to try and get rid of him." I told her and she and Clem nodded their heads while Sarah and I got under the bed.

"Hi, girls." He said.

_"Oh, fuck. He's in the house."_ I thought as I looked to see Sarah was started to hyperventilate. I grabbed her hand, and she took that as a sign to calm down.

"What are your names?" I heard him ask.

"Carley." I heard Clem say.

"Kyra." I heard Rebecca say.

"Carley and Kyra. Cute names." He said when I heard footsteps.

"This is a nice place. Kinda cozy. Is there anyone else around?" He asked them. "Just the two of us." Rebecca replied.

"Hmm. Well, then. I'll cut to the chase; I'm out looking for my people, eleven of them to be exact. They've been gone a long time, and… I'm worried they might've gotten lost. Maybe you girls have seen them?" He asked them. "What do they look like?" Rebecca asked.

"Two farm boys and an old man… Spanish man and his daughter. Quiet girl, about Kyra's height. A big, black guy about this size… A pretty pregnant lady… A girl with caramel brown hair… pretty smart… a girl with red and black hair… a girl with a bandana over her eye… Funny one, usually wears a black flannel shirt… and finally, a muscular boy, blood red eyes, wears sunglasses to hide them." Carver said.

"That's a lot of people to lose." Clem said. "I agree." Rebecca said.

I was shocked about what I heard about Chris. _"His eyes are blood red?"_ I thought to myself. I then heard footsteps coming up the stairs and then I heard a door opening.

"Huh, I knew someone who had a guitar." Carver said.

I went wide eyed. _"Shit! He's in my room!"_ I thought.

"Carley found it when we first came here. She's been trying to play it." Rebecca said.

"Looks like the one that girl had…" Carver said.

"Weird…" I heard Clem say.

"Yeah… it is…"

The footsteps grew louder until they reached the door. Carver opened it, stepped in, and I got scared he would find us.

"Like we said, we're the only ones here." Clem said.

"Seems that way. Sorry. Didn't mean to be rude. Just couldn't leave you here with a good conscience if someone was poking around, right?" He asked them.

"Right." Rebecca said.

"Sure." Clem said.

He knelt down and picked up the picture of Sarah. I looked at her and saw she put her hands over her mouth to keep herself from screaming.

"Who is this?" He asked, showing the photo to Clem and Rebecca. "No idea. Kyra?" Clem asked. "Must be someone who lived here before." She replied.

Silence followed before Carver spoke again. "You have no idea who these people are, do you?" He asked, and now, I was terrified. _"Dammit! He's figured us out!" _I thought.

"We don't know what you're talking about." Rebecca said.

"When you met 'em, how much did they trust you two?" He asked them.

"What's your point?" Clem asked.

"If people don't trust you, how can you trust them?" He asked. I felt a feeling of extreme hatred in me._ "He used to say that to us at the camp."_ I thought.

"Well, I think I've troubled you two long enough. I'll let myself out." He said as he stepped out of the room and headed for the front door.

"Wait! Who are you?" Clem asked.

"You two have a good day now." He said as he left. I climbed out from under the bed, with Sarah in tow. We all then watched him disappear into the woods. During the time, I was seethed.

"W-What if he comes back?" Sarah asked.

I sighed.

"Chris is NOT gonna be happy about this…" I said cryptically.

We waited for the others to get back. I was pacing with Rebecca while Clem and Sarah sat down on the couch.

"We have to find the others." I said.

"Agreed." Rebecca said, while Clem nodded.

"But we can't leave the house!" Sarah said as we all started for the kitchen, just in time to see everyone but Nick enter the kitchen.

"Clementine!" Luke said as Sarah ran to Carlos and hugged him while I ran to Chris and hugged him.

"Any luck finding Nick?" I asked Tess when I pulled away from Chris. She sighed and shook her head. "No, we couldn't find him…" She replied.

Sarah looked down at her feet. "Someone was here." She said. Everyone looked to her in horror while Chris inhaled sharply through his teeth.

"What did she just say?" Bec asked. "Someone was here. Clem and I talked to him." Rebecca replied. "And you opened the door for him?!" Bec asked.

"Calm down, Bec." Jennifer said.

"We didn't open the door! I was going to lock it, but he just walked in." Clem said.

"I can vouch for that." Rebecca said.

"And you two just let them do it?!" Bec asked me, and I was getting furious.

"Hey, Sarah and I hid under a bed, okay?!" I stated.

"It's true!" Sarah backed me up.

"Who was he? Did he say what his name was?" Carlos asked desperately.

"I know EXACTLY who it was!" Chris snarled.

"Maybe it wasn't him?" Bec suggested, while I just scoffed.

"You know damn well who it was." I snapped.

"Look, girls. Just tell us what he looked like. What was he wearing?" Carlos asked Clementine and Rebecca.

"He was wearing a brown coat…" Clem replied, as Chris started panting with anger.

"Did it have a lining? A collar?" Carlos asked.

"Yes. Fur lining." Rebecca replied.

"That's definitely him!" Emily exclaimed as Chris slashed a drawer with his machete.

"GODDAMMIT!" He roared as he slashed a cabinet. I looked at Sarah and saw her hiding behind her dad.

"Chris, calm down. You're scaring Sarah." I barked.

"You're not gonna hurt anyone, are you, Daddy?" Sarah asked Carlos.

"Of course he won't, Sarah. Your dad's the nicest person I know. Which is why he's not gonna do anything crazy, or… _not nice, _right?" Luke assured her. I looked at Chris to see his half-sisters were trying to calm him down.

Carlos placed a hand on his daughter's back. "You know these are bad people, sweetie. They will do or say anything to hurt us…"

"What do you think? Did it seem like he was coming back?" Luke asked.

"HE BETTER NOT!" Chris bellowed, full of intense hatred.

"He saw this picture of me." Sarah said as she was pulling out the photo of herself.

"A picture?! What are you doing taking pictures?!" He furiously asked. He then turned to me. "And you let this happen?!" He asked me, and now I was past my breaking point.

"Hey, don't lay that one on me! How the fuck was I supposed to know Carver would show up?!" I asked.

"Carlos, Chris, and Anne! Calm down! You're scaring Sarah." Luke said.

Clem walked to my side. "It was my fault. I took the picture." She admitted.

"No! I asked her to! It's my fault!" Sarah said.

Carlos sighed. "Sarah… ?"

"He saw my guitar." I said, then heard Chris roar.

"Now he KNOWS we're here!" He shouted as he shoved everything off the counter.

"He was scouting. We got lucky. He wasn't expecting to find us. Clementine and Rebecca must've surprised him. If they hadn't been there… Well, he was too smart to stick around, but he'll be back with the rest. We don't have much time." Carlos said.

"He's right. Everyone pack your stuff! We're moving out!" Luke ordered.

Alvin left the room furious. Bec followed after him. "Alvin, wait!" She said.

"Who is this guy?" Clem asked.

Chris took a deep breath. "You wanna know who he is? He's the piece of shit that killed my step-mother!" Chris exclaimed as he walked out of the kitchen, with Tess and Emily trailing him.

I looked at Clementine. "Clem, I don't know what he told you and Rebecca, but William Carver is a dangerous man. He's the leader of a camp not far from here, and he is VERY smart… We all were… lucky to escape." I said, sighing.

"How do you, Chris and his half-sisters know him?" She asked me. "Let's just say the four of us were members of his community once…" I replied.

"Why is Chris so angry?" She asked me, and Chris came back.

"Because he's the snarling bastard Tess, Emily, and I called 'Father'…" He replied, then put a hand on her shoulder. "Listen to me, Clementine. Now that he's seen you and Rebecca, you'll be safer with us." He said.

"Well, if she's going with y'all, then so am I." Jennifer said.

Clem then looked at everyone. "We need to find Nick." She said.

"You know where he is, right?" Chris asked. "Yeah." Clem replied.

Everyone all had their things packed and came back into the kitchen.

"Chris, can I ask you something, in private?" I asked him, and he nodded his head. We walked into the living room and I felt myself blush the deepest red humanly possible.

"You okay, Anne?" He asked me.

"Y- Yeah. I just wanted to know if you wanted to go out w- with me." I sheepishly said.

"Well, let me ask you a question, Anne Marshall." He said and I looked at him. "What took you so long to ask?"

I smiled from ear to ear. I jumped into his arms and kissed him, which he started returning.

After we broke the kiss, we walked back into the kitchen, holding hands. Tess and Emily smirked at the sight.

"About fucking time." Tess said. We all then followed Clem into the woods to find Nick.

**That's chapter seven. Will the group find Nick? Find out in the next chapter. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: Revelations and Nightmares**

**Anne's POV**

We kept following Clem when I wanted to ask Chris something.

"Baby?" I asked him and he looked at me.

"Yeah?" He replied.

"When Carver was at the cabin, he mentioned you had blood red eyes. Is it true?" I asked him.

He slowed his pace and so did I.

"If I show you my eyes, promise me you won't make fun of them." He said. "I promise." I said.

He then removed his sunglasses and showed me his eyes. "They're beautiful." I said. "You're beautiful." He said and I blushed.

We then looked to see Clem stray from the path.

"Go on ahead, sweetie. I'll ask Emmy to keep me company." He told me, his voice cracking, and I figured he wanted to cry. Emily came over to his side as I walked over to Clem.

**Chris's POV**

As Emmy came to my side, she could see the sadness in my eyes and opened her arms. I fell into them and started sobbing. She knew I wasn't crying about Coleen, but my past.

"It's okay, bro. Let it out." I heard her say and I obliged. I knew I wouldn't be able to show Anne my eyes without crying.

"I knew it would happen if I showed her." I managed to say through sobs.

"Let me call for Tess." She said and I nodded my head.

"Tess, can you come over here real quick?" She asked and I heard Tess approaching. She didn't have to ask why I was crying. She just embraced me.

"Every fucking night I wake up remembering how bad it was for me, Tessie. I can still hear their voices to this day." I said as I kept crying into her chest.

"Shh, shh. I'm here." She said as I wrapped around her tighter.

"I don't know why I can't show them without bursting to tears." I said.

"They're not gonna hurt you, Chris. Anne, Emmy, and I are here for you." She told me. "I know. It still hurts so much to think about what they did to me." I said.

"Chris? Are you alright?" I heard Sarah ask me.

"No, Sarah. He isn't." Tess replied, since I was in no condition to talk.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"If we tell you, promise us you won't say a thing to anyone." Emily said. "I promise." Sarah said. "If something's wrong with him, we all deserve to know." Carlos said. "Okay. But none of this goes back to Anne. Clear?" Tess asked, and everyone nodded their heads.

"It's about our half-brother's eyes. They're blood red." Tess said and Rebecca went wide eyed.

"Carver mentioned that." She said.

"Yes. And because of his eye color, he was constantly attacked by bullies. Only Emily and I were there to protect him at school. He would tell our parents, but Carver never believed him. My mom did and always did what she could to comfort him. One day, Emily and I weren't there for him and he was viciously attacked. He had to go to the ER one day. He nearly died, and would have if paramedics hadn't arrived." Tess said. I looked at everyone to see they had looks of horror on their faces.

"We were so scared that he wasn't gonna make it. But we were so relieved when we found out he was gonna be alright. Tess, Coleen, and I ran into the room to see him. We were so happy when he smiled at us. After that day, he wore his sunglasses and always refused to take them off. After a couple of days, the teachers all stopped trying to get him to take them off, but the bullies started spreading rumors that he was blind." Emily added.

"That's why he went off on Nick when you two first arrived." Carlos concluded, earning nods from the three of us.

"Because without them, I'd have to deal with _him._" I said before Sarah put a hand on my shoulder.

"I'm so sorry to hear that." She said.

"Yeah. No one should have to deal with that kind of abuse." Luke said.

"Thanks, guys. You have no idea how good that makes me feel." I said as Anne and Clem were coming back with Nick. I rose an eyebrow when the girls put their arms around Nick.

"Hey, Tess. You got any aspirin?" Nick asked and I smacked my forehead.

"You're trapped in a shed and the first thing on your mind is get your ass drunk?" I joked, earning chuckles from the others and a groan from Nick.

"Pete's dead." Nick said as he wrapped his arms around Tess. "I know, baby. But we need to move. Carver came to the cabin and he might still be after us." She said. We all kept walking after that.

**Anne's POV**

I looked at Chris and saw he looked a little down. So I decided to surprise him and kiss him to try and make him feel better. At first he blushed, but then he smiled and kissed me right back.

_"Mission accomplished." _I thought to myself.

"Hey, Chris, can we talk to you for a sec?" Nick called for him and I pouted as he walked over to them. I walked over to a tree to wait for him so we could kiss again. Suddenly, I felt something wrap around my ankle, then the next thing I know, I ended up hanging upside down, screaming.

"GAH! GODDAMN IT! WHAT THE FUCK! WHY AM I STUCK ON THIS GODDAMN TREE?!" I furiously asked.

**Chris's POV**

I looked at Tess with shock. "When the fuck did this happen?" I asked after seeing the positive pregnancy test.

"The night Emmy and I arrived at the cabin." She replied.

I then turned my eyes to glare at Nick. "What the fuck were you-?" I started when I heard Anne screaming.

I went wide eyed and ran back to where she was when I looked up and laughed.

"Just hanging out, baby?" I joked, making everyone laugh.

"Very funny… Now GET ME DOWN!" She demanded.

"Okay. But remember you asked for it. Tess, you cut her down and I'll catch her." I said and Tess climbed to the where Anne was hanging after I handed her my machete. I walked underneath Anne and told Tess to cut her down.

"AAAAAHHHHH!" I heard Anne scream as I held my arms open for her. She fell right into my arms, but we both still fell to the ground. Tess climbed down as Emily helped us both to our feet. After that little fun was over, we decided to keep moving.

**Anne's POV**

After a few more hours, I looked up to see it was getting dark.

"We should stop for the night." I said.

"I'm with Anne. I need to rest." Bec agreed. Carlos looked hesitant, but Luke spoke up.

"Alright. You guys get some rest. I'll take watch." He said.

"You sure, Luke?" Chris asked. "I'm sure, man." Luke replied. Chris just shrugged and set up his sleeping bag next to mine. I lay still in my sleeping bag for a few minutes. Then I felt my eye start to droop and then fell asleep.

_I heard what sounded like waves crashing which told me I was near water. I then heard chuckling and turned around. I saw the kids that bullied me were forcing me towards the cliff. "Please, don't do this." I pleaded, to no avail._

_ "We just want to have a little fun, Cyclops." One of them said as four of them grabbed my arms and legs. _

_"NO! PLEASE! DON'T DO THIS!" I screamed, but they threw me over the edge. I screamed as I fell._

"NOOOOOO!" I screamed, hyperventilating as I woke up.

"Baby?" Chris asked me. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Just had a nightmare, that's all." I told him.

"Talk to me about it in the morning, okay?" He asked and I nodded my head.

"Could I crawl into your sleeping bag with you?" I asked him and he smiled.

"Of course." He replied and I crawled out of my sleeping bag and into his. We placed our arms around each other and fell asleep.

**That's chapter eight. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Anger Management**

**Anne's POV**

We had been walking for a week, but I was worried about Tess. She'd been throwing every morning for the past week, and I was started to wonder if she would make it.

"Sweetie?" I asked, and Chris looked at me.

"What is it, Annie?" He asked me.

"Is Tess okay?" I asked.

He sighed and slowed his pace and I matched his movements. We were behind the group when he looked at me.

"What I'm about to tell you can't go back to anyone but us, Nick, Emmy, and Tess. Promise?" He asked me. "I promise." I replied.

He then leaned his mouth towards my ear. "Tess is pregnant." He whispered and I was shocked. "How far along is she?" I asked. "About a week." He replied.

**Chris's POV**

I looked at Anne to see she was shocked to hear about Tess.

"That's why Nick and Tess wanted to talk to you." She said and I nodded my head. I then looked over to see a bridge and Clementine scouting with her binoculars.

"See anything?" Luke asked.

"She better see something." Alvin groaned. "We've been walking for a goddamn week."

"There's a lift or something." Clem said.

"Chair lift? Must be that ski lodge." Luke said before looking back down at the map.

"I've never been skiing before." Clem thought aloud.

"Bec and I went once." Alvin said.

"It wasn't pretty." Bec said, chuckling.

"Coleen took me and Emmy once." I said.

"I remember you fell on your ass." Emily said.

"At least I didn't fall face first." I retorted. I then looked to see Anne talking with Tess. Emily noticed this and rose an eyebrow. "You told her, didn't you?" She asked me and I nodded my head, expecting a slap in the face. It never came. She just nodded her head.

"There's a building on the mountain." I heard Clem say, gaining everyone's attention.

"What's it look like?" I asked.

"It's big." She replied.

"Sounds like a good place to spend the night." Anne said.

"There's a little house by the bridge." Clem said.

"How big is it?" Tess asked.

"Pretty small." Clem replied before putting her binoculars away and climbing down from the rock.

"We have to cross that bridge. Let's go." Carlos said crossing his arms.

"Hold on now. We can't just go sprinting across that thing, okay?" Luke pointed out as I walked over to them.

"Luke's right, Carlos. If we get spotted, we're gonna be trapped." I said.

"Going around that lake will take too long." Carlos said.

"Right, but we've got no idea what's out there. I'm gonna sneak across to make sure it's clear before we bring the whole group over." Luke said.

"Anne and I can use our Sais to cover you." I said as Anne came to my side.

"You really think splitting up the group is a good idea?" Carlos asked.

"We never said it was a GOOD idea, but it's a helluva lot better than risking everyone's ass at once." I replied.

"What's the plan, then?" Anne asked.

"You and Chris cover us from here while Clem and I scoot across low and slow and make sure nobody's waiting for us on the other side." Luke replied.

I turned and knelt to Clem's level. "Once our Sais are thrown, could you hold onto them for us?" I asked her.

"Yeah." She replied.

"The rest of us will have a hard time covering you from back here." Alvin stated.

"Well, we'll just turn around if it gets hairy." Luke said.

"Clementine should stay here. She's-"

Luke cut him off. "She's what?"

"She's just a little girl, Luke." Carlos replied.

"Carlos, when Anne and I found her, she was fighting off a dog. Anne told me that while I was comatose, she kept a lurker from biting her. This 'little girl' is tough as nails." I said.

"I can do it." Clem said confidently.

"It's gonna be fine. We'll signal you guys in ten minutes. Just watch for a light at the far side. Chris and Anne, do you guys need scopes?" Luke asked us and I shook my head.

"I have two in my bag." I replied.

"I can go too." Nick offered, but Luke refused.

"You can stay with the group." Luke said, looking to me for support.

"He's right, Nick. With you in your condition, that's way too risky. Besides, you need to be there for Tess." I said.

"I'm fine, guys." Nick insisted.

Carlos crossed his arms. "I don't like this." He said.

"You don't like anything, Carlos." I said.

"Yeah, when's the last time you liked anything?" Luke asked.

"I'll cover you." Nick said.

"No, Nick. You're not in good condition to do that." I said.

"I can help them, Chris."

"NO!" I shouted.

"You're staying back here with the group." I added.

"But…" Nick started.

"End of discussion." I said. Nick reluctantly conceded and went to sit with Tess.

Luke sighed. "Come on, Clem." He said as they walked to the bridge while Anne and I walked to the rock where Clem was scouting. We drew our Sais and stood ready to throw them just in case.

"Baby, don't you think you were a little hard on Nick?" She asked me as I sighed and pulled out the scopes and handed one to her.

"Tess needs him. And with what happened to his mom and Pete…" I replied, trailing off.

A few minutes later, I saw lurkers attacking Luke and Clem. Two were in front of Clem, so I threw my Sai, and Anne matched my movements. After the Sais made impact, Clem looked back to us and smirked. She then pulled the Sais out of the lurkers' heads and ran to help Luke.

A few minutes after that, I looked and saw a strange person in front of Clem and Luke. Nick saw the figure and ran to help them.

"NICK!" I called, but he was too far ahead already.

"Grrr! I'm gonna kill him!" Tess said.

"Not if Luke beats you to it." I said. When we made our way to the bridge, I saw Nick pointing his rifle at someone, but couldn't tell who. Suddenly, a gunshot rang out and we ran to see what happened.

Once we were on the bridge, I saw someone go over the edge. We managed to catch up to Nick, Luke, and Clem.

"Did I get him? Where is he?!" I heard Nick ask.

"I told you not to shoot!" Luke exclaimed. "Why didn't you wait for our signal?"

"We thought you were in trouble! You were wavin' your arms, so I thought you meant shoot!"

"He was going to help us…" Clem explained. Anne and I looked at each other confused.

"How do you know that?!" Nick asked scowling.

Luke shook his head. "Dammit, Nick! I told you not to shoot!" He snapped.

"How was I supposed to hear you? You gave me a clear shot!" Nick retorted.

"SHUT UP!" I shouted, surprising everyone. "That shot rang out for miles. Let's just get the fuck off of this bridge and explain everything on the other side." I ordered, taking point. As Anne and I passed Clem, she gave us back our Sais.

Once we were off the bridge, I turned to face Luke, Clem, and Nick.

"Someone better start talking or I'll get answers my way." I harshly said.

"Clem and I ran into someone, and Nick here thought he was gonna shoot us, so he shot him." Luke explained. Everyone went wide eyed.

"WHAT?!" Tess exclaimed.

"Who was that back there?" Bec asked as she leaned over, holding her back. Emily walked over to her to help her.

"Looked like he had a gun on you." Alvin said, before I shot him a glare, telling him to shut up.

"That asshole drew on me! He was about to shoot!" Nick said.

"Oh, was he?" Luke asked.

"I'm telling you, he drew first!" Nick defended, but I was already getting furious. Anne came to try and calm me down.

"Baby, don't touch me right now. I don't wanna hurt you." I said to her.

"That's not what it looked like to me!" Tess said.

"Everybody calm down!" Clem said.

"What did you see, Clem? Was that guy gonna shoot?" Alvin asked.

"Fuck you, Luke! You've been on my case the whole week!" Nick snapped. "And why do you think that is?" Luke calmly asked.

"He wasn't gonna do anything…" Clem said.

"I know what I saw!" Nick insisted while scowling. I walked up to him and punched him in the face so hard, he went to the ground.

"WHAT THE FUCK, MAN?!" He asked me. "JUST BECAUSE IT _LOOKED_ LIKE HE WAS GONNA SHOOT DOESN'T GIVE YOU A GODDAMN REASON TO PUT A FUCKING BULLET IN HIS NECK, YOU DUMBASS! YOU COULDA HIT CLEM OR LUKE, GODDAMMIT!" I roared. "Yeah, but I didn't!" Nick snapped and at this point, I was beyond furious.

Tess came and stood between us. "ALRIGHT! THAT'S ENOUGH!" She screamed. I then glared at Nick, and spat in his face before I walked off into the woods with my machete in my hand. Tess, Anne, and Emily knew what I was gonna do, but they didn't follow me.

**Anne's POV**

Clem was gonna go talk to Chris when I put hand on her shoulder to stop her. "Let him go, Clem. He just needs to let out a little steam." I told her before I turned to see Luke and Nick at it again.

"Look, I know Pete was close to you, but-" Luke started before Nick stopped him. "Don't fucking talk about him!" He snapped when I drew my Sai and my knife and stood in between them before a fight could break out.

"Do you think he was with Carver?" Carlos asked.

"I don't know… I- No. I don't think so. But he fell over." Luke replied. "He fell off the damn bridge?!" Alvin asked.

"We need to keep moving." Carlos ordered. "I can't. I need a minute…" Bec said as she sat down. "And I refuse to leave Chris." I said, looking to his sisters for support.

"Fine." Carlos reluctantly agreed. "Luke, can I talk to you for a minute?" Carlos asked. He and Luke then walked to a nearby tree. Nick scowled as he stormed over to a bench by the station. Chris came back, but his clothes and his machete were covered in lurker blood. I ran to him.

"Jesus Christ! What happened to you?" I asked as Tess and Emily came running to him too. He shrugged.

"Eh, the usual. Lurkers tried to bite me, I stabbed them. End of story." He replied smugly before looking at Nick. "I'm gonna go apologize to Nick." He said.

"We'll come with you." I said, and he nodded his head. Alvin called Clem over to him and she walked to him while the four of us walked over to Nick.

He looked at Chris and went wide eyed.

"Dude, what happened to you?" He asked.

"Eh, same old sob story. Lurkers tried to bite me, I cut out their jaws, then stabbed them in the heads. End of story." Chris replied. "But that's not why I came over here. I came over here to apologize for punching you square in the mouth." Chris said.

"Bygones, man." Nick said and I smiled. "We good? No plans to murder anyone in their sleep now?" I asked. "That's a boring way to do it." Chris said. "I wasn't planning on it either." Nick said.

After that, we walked away to Alvin and Bec.

"You guys got any food? Bec's dying here." He said. "Alvin, I told you, I'm fine." Bec insisted. All four of us shook our heads. "We can check out the station. That guy said he had food there." Clem said.

"Let's go take a look, then." Chris said. "Jeez, man. Is all that lurker blood?" Alvin asked him.

"What do you think?" Chris retorted. All five of us then walked back to the station to look around.

**That's chapter nine. I know it's a cliffy and I'm sorry. Next chapter will pick up right after Nick walks over to Luke and Carlos to talk to them. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: Old Friends**

**Anne's POV**

Clem, Chris, Tess, Emily, and I were inside the small building to see what kinds of food we could find for Bec. Clem headed over to a bed near the fireplace.

"I guess that man slept here…" She thought aloud. "He must have." Tess agreed.

"It's too small for all five of us to search it. I suggest someone go and make sure everyone okay." Chris said

"I'll go." Emily said as she headed for the door when Tess stopped her.

"No, I'll go." Tess said, but Chris looked worried.

"You sure, Tessie?" He asked her.

"Yeah, I'm sure." She said as she walked out the door. I looked at Chris to see he looked extremely worried and Emily and I knew exactly why.

"She'll be fine." Emily and I assured him. Emily then went to keep her pregnant half-sister company.

Clem wandered over to a trunk. Next to it were several cans. Chris knelt down and observed them.

"Empty…" He muttered.

"That man said he had lots of food. There's gotta still be something left." Clem said. I was about to grab the lid when Chris stopped me.

"It needs a key, baby." He said to me, pointing to a lock.

"That man probably had it." Clem guessed as she walked over to a table and picked up a survival knife and slashed the air with it.

"Feels pretty good." She said and Chris looked at her.

"Keep it. It'll come in handy if we run into lurkers." He said to her. I then looked at the lock and had an idea. I drew my Sai and cut the lock off.

"Good thing there was no alarm attached to that." Chris joked and I giggled. Then I opened up the trunk and found two canned peaches a few books.

Just then, Alvin came into the building. "Man… and I thought WE had it bad. Look at this dump…" He said as he looked the place over. He then saw the can of peaches in Clem's hand. "Guess he did have food."

"Man, fuck Nick… He's lost a lot of his people, that's for sure, but that doesn't give him any excuse to go and shoot strangers." Chris said.

"He was trying to help." Clementine said.

"Yeah, and someone died cause of that. I ain't no judge, but that's straight up murder in my book. I mean, you ever known anyone who would do a thing like that?" Alvin asked. Chris and I looked at Clem to see she had a saddened look on her face.

"Actually, yeah… a woman in our group. Her dad died… and then… she just shot this other woman…" Clem explained. I knelt down and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Was she the one who shot this Carley?" I asked and Clem sadly nodded.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Chris said.

"Damn. What did you guys do?" Alvin asked.

"We left her behind." Clem replied.

"Damn…" Chris and Alvin muttered. Chris pulled the other can of peaches out of the trunk, looked at it, then Clem and smirked.

"That's funny. She looks just like you." He said, referring to the girl on the can. I looked at Clem and held back a chuckle. She's not amused.

"Hey, Clem, there's not a lot of food left, and Bec… well, she's eating for two. You think you can keep this between the four of us? I'd hate to even say it, you know but- I'd never go against the group, but I gotta put Bec and the baby first…"

Clem smiled a little. "She can have it. I won't say anything.

"Thanks, Clem." Alvin said before turning to us. "You guys OK with this?"

"I am if you are, Annie." Chris said to me.

"Yeah. She can have it. My lips are sealed." I said. Chris gave me a quick kiss on the lips while Alvin looked out the window. Carlos, Luke, Tess, and Nick were talking about something.

"It's a shame. Nick's a good guy. He's still a good guy, but he's just losing it… God knows we're not perfect… Hell, I'm glad you're with us, Clementine." He said, making Clem smile. Suddenly, Chris saw something and I grew concerned.

"What is it, sweetie?" I asked, earning Alvin and Clementine's attention.

"What's that?" He asked, pointing to the bridge. The three of us came to him and went wide eyed, as did he.

"Shit!" Chris, Alvin, and I said as we ran out the door. "LURKERS!" Chris shouted. "We have to get out of here!" Clem shouted as we all headed up the mountain.

**Chris's POV**

We finally made it to the ski lodge, but it's dark now. Nick and Carlos were looking around for any signs of life while Bec, Anne, and I were panting as hard. I knelt down, extremely exhausted. My half-sisters came to my side and put my arms around their shoulders to help me to my feet.

"T… Thanks." I managed to say while panting. "Don't mention it." They said at the same time.

"Well? What're we waiting for?" Bec asked, clearly exhausted. "I'm with her on this one, Carlos." I said.

Carlos turned to us and looked at us as we reached our destination. "We need to be careful." He said.

Bec scoffed. "Careful? We've been on the road for five days. My back is done being careful." She retorted.

I managed to catch my breath when I see Anne hunch over, placing her hands on her knees.

"I'm with Bec on this one." She said. "My feet feel like they're gonna fall off at any second now…" She added.

I then had an idea. I crouched down a little and looked at her to see she was confused. I nodded towards my back and she realized what I was doing. She then hopped onto my back and wrapped her arms around my neck while I grabbed her legs.

"Chris…" Emily started before I cut her off. "It's okay, Emmy. I can manage." I said as I slowly straightened out my legs. I then looked to my right shoulder to see Anne's eye was closed, which told me she was asleep. I decided not to wake her.

Alvin stepped onto the deck and examined the boarded up windows. "Doesn't look like anyone's home." He observed as the rest of us stepped onto the deck.

"Can't be too careful, big guy." I said, earning a nod from him. He then noticed a passed out Anne on my back.

"She asleep?" He asked. "Yeah, she is." I replied and he nodded in understanding and walked over to Bec to help her.

I looked to see Tess attempting to pry off a board, to no avail. "Damn, this is STUR-DAY!" She muttered. I then walked over to her and stopped when I reached her side. "Whoever nailed these down did a damn good job." I muttered.

"I'll go check around front." Alvin said.

"I'll go with you." Carlos said as the two men headed towards the front. I hoisted Anne back up to keep her from slipping. Nick saw this and walked over to me.

"How about we trade? I'll take her and you can take my rifle." He offered. I looked thoughtful for a moment, and nodded my head. I turned around and allowed him to pick her up. I then picked up his rifle and glared at him.

"Drop her, and I swear, you'll never hear the end of it. Both from me, and from her." I warned, and he nodded his head in understanding. He then carried her over to Bec and Emily while walked to Clem and Luke, who were observing the ski lift.

"… Could probably get a better view up top. You feel like taking a look?" He asked her. I looked at the top of the lift. I then looked to see Anne walking over to us.

"It'd be just like climbing a treehouse, Clem." I said to her.

"I had a treehouse once…" She said.

"Cool." Anne said as she came to my side.

"I hated it." Clem said.

"Oh." Anne, Luke, and I said.

Clem then started climbing the lift. Anne then took my hand and Luke smirked. "One word out of you, Luke, and you'll need a new set of teeth. Clear?" I asked. "Crystal." Luke replied, albeit with slight fear.

"Don't fucking move!" I heard someone shout. Anne and I ran back to the deck to find a few people with Tess, one holding a rifle.

"Hey, back off, pal!" I said.

Carlos and Alvin came running around the corner as a man with a beard shove Tess to the ground. I was furious when I saw that and ran to her.

"You okay, sis?" I asked and she nodded her head. Jennifer stood in front Rebecca.

"This is our house! Get the hell out!" The bearded man said.

"Fuck that!" I said as I pointed my rifle at him. "And don't push my half-sister again unless you wanna lose a fucking kneecap!" I added, this time, with venom in my words. "Besides, we've been walking for five days! Give us a fucking break!" I said as he pointed his rifle at me.

"Are you thieves?!" Another asked. This one sounded like a teenager. "I swear we're not here for that!" Anne exclaimed. Luke came running up to us.

"What's going on here?!" He asked as he held his hands up in surrender.

"There's more of you?!" Beardy growled.

"Listen everyone, just calm down!" Luke said.

"Fuck that, Luke!" I snarled before turning my attention to the asshole who had his rifle drawn on me. "Tell us who you are, or else I've just found me something for target practice." I said as a woman came outside.

"Who are you?! Are you trying to rob us?!" She asked. Judging by her accent, I'm assuming she's Indian.

"Excuse me, honey, but do I look like a fucking thief?" Bec snapped.

Tess threw her hands up in surrender. "Look, this is all just a misunderstanding!" She exclaimed.

I saw Anne glare at the people. "We're not robbing anybody! God, how many fucking times to I have to say it?!" She asked, and I sensed frustration in her voice.

"Everyone calm down!" A guy with a red sweater said.

"Tell your asshole of a friend here to lower his gun and I MIGHT calm down a little." I barked, but Beardy refused. "FUCK THAT!" He said.

"Hey, man, calm the fuck down!" Alvin shot back to sweater guy. "Save your breath, Alvin." I hissed, now pointing the gun at another teenager. "Anybody moves, and Buzzcut over there gets a bullet in his skull. I kid you not." I ordered as the other teenager steps in front of him. "Kill my brother, you kill me." He said. "Don't fucking tempt me." I retorted.

"Sarah, get behind me!" Carlos said as Sarah did as she was told. Emily stepped forward a little. "We thought this place was abandoned! We'll leave right now!" She said.

"Just tell us who you are!" Sweater-dude said. "FUCK YOU, DOUCHEBAG!" I shot back. Tess put her hand on my shoulder. "Tess, don't touch me right now. I don't wanna hurt you." I told her and felt her hand leave my shoulder.

"Please… Just DO what he says!" The Indian woman pleaded. "SHUT UP, BITCH!" I shouted. I looked at beard-man and saw he was furious. "Don't talk to her like that!" He ordered.

Suddenly, we heard a gasp behind us and I turned to see Clementine weaving her way through us. She looked straight at the guy who had his gun aimed at me. He looked at her and looked completely shocked.

"Kenny…?!" She asked.

"Wait one fucking minute! You KNOW this guy, Clem?!" I asked her. I looked at the man who drew on me and assumed he was Kenny. He kept looking at Clem in shock. "Clementine…?" He asked.

Suddenly, Clem leapt forward and hugged him and he hugged her right back.

"I'll take that as a yes." Anne said.

Kenny then looked to us. "These people with you?" He asked and she nodded.

I walked up to them. "Somebody wanna tell us what the fuck is going on?!" I asked as I looked at the two teens and rose an eyebrow. I followed their gaze to Anne, then look back at them to see their wide eyed faces.

"Is that…"

"N-no… It can't be…"

"Uh, you guys know my girlfriend or something?" I demanded. "Yeah, what are you two talking about?!" She asked.

"Anne?" The one who stood in front of his brother asked.

"Am I supposed to know you?" She asked.

Buzzcut stepped closer to her when I stepped in between them. "Close enough, bub." I warned, pointing the rifle at his chest. He looked past me and at Anne. "Anne, come on… It's us, remember?" He asked her. "Back. The. Fuck. OFF!" I demanded, pushing him back with the barrel of the rifle.

"D-Dylan?! Chase?!" She exclaimed as she leapt past me and hugged the two brothers. "Wait a minute! You know these people, baby?" I asked as soon as she pulled away from them. "Yeah. This is Chase and Dylan Enheart. I met them four years ago." She replied as I lowered the gun.

"Man, it's so good to see you again." The one with the buzz cut, who I presumed was Dylan, said as he hugged her. I was getting jealous and walked over to them. "Okay, that's enough of that." I snapped as I pulled him off of her.

"Sorry. It's just… I can't believe it's her." He said as the older guy, who I assumed was Chase, walked up to us.

"We can talk inside." Kenny said. Anne and I walked with Dylan and Chase when I had a look of extreme guilt. "Sorry for threatening to kill your brother, Chase." I said to him, and he smiled. "Just don't do it again, and we won't have any problems." He said. He extended his hand and I shook it.

"So, how do you know Anne?" Dylan asked me.

"He's my boyfriend. This is Chris Carver. These are his half-sisters, Tess and Emily." Anne said, introducing me and my sisters. Chase and Dylan nodded their heads to us. We all then walked inside. I whistled. "Nice place you people have here." I said. "Thanks." Chase said as he looked at Jennifer and smirked.

"I'm Chase." He introduced himself.

"I'm Jennifer Hudson, not the actress." She introduced herself when I saw her blush at Chase's smirk. I then saw Dylan smirking at Rebecca and nudged her to him.

"Hi." She said sheepishly. "Hi. I'm Dylan." He said. "I'm Rebecca Townley." She said and I smirked. _"Mission accomplished."_ I thought to myself.

**That's chapter ten. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11: Old Wounds**

**Chris's POV**

I was looking at Anne while she was talking to Chase, Dylan, and everyone else when my half-sisters came to my side.

"What's bothering our loving half-brother so much right now?" Tess asked.

"I'm not jealous, if that's what you're thinking, girls. Anne deserves to see her old friends." I quickly defended. Emily nodded her head, but Tess frowned.

"I know when you're bullshitting me, Chris. What's really bothering you?" She asked and I sighed.

"You really have to ask?" I asked, choking up. They both put their hands on my shoulders and sat down with me.

"We miss her, too, Chris. But you have us, Anne, and everyone else. Don't blame yourself for what Carver did." Emily told me, but I was still upset. I saw a piano on the other side of the others and decided to let my feelings out as I walked towards the piano.

**Anne's POV**

"Jesus Christ. His dad didn't even try to save her?" Kenny asked me and I shook my head. "No, I tried to reach Coleen, but that asshole wouldn't let me. He grabbed my arm and dragged me away." I replied. Everyone had sad looks until we heard a piano being played. We all turned to see Chris playing a piano not far from us.

_I'm so tired of being here_

_Suppressed by all my childish fears_

_And if you have to leave_

_I wish that you would just leave_

_'Cause your presence still lingers here_

_And it won't leave me alone_

_These wounds won't seem to heal_

_This pain is just too real_

_There's just too much that time cannot erase_

_When you cried, I'd wipe away your tears_

_When you'd scream, I'd fight away all of your fears_

_And I held your hand through all of these years_

_But you still have_

_All of me_

_You used to captivate me_

_By your resonating light_

_Now I'm bound by the life you left behind_

_Your face, it haunts_

_My once pleasant dreams_

_Your voice, it chased away_

_All the sanity in me_

_These wounds won't seem to heal_

_This pain is just too real_

_There's just too much that time cannot erase_

_When you cried, I'd wipe away all of your tears_

_When you'd scream, I'd fight away all of your fears_

_And I held your hand through all of these years_

_But you still have_

_All of me_

_I've tried so hard to tell myself_

_That you're gone_

_But though you're still with me_

_I've been alone all along_

_…_

As I kept looking at him, I covered my mouth as I was growing sad._ "How much pain are you bearing, my love?" _I thought to myself before he sang again.

_When you cried, I'd wipe away all of your tears_

_When you'd scream, I'd fight away all of your fears_

_And I held your hand through all of these years_

_But you still have_

_All of me_

_Me, me, me_

As soon as he finished singing, I felt a tear run down my face and saw everyone look at him with sympathy, but his half-sisters burst into tears. Jennifer and Chase walked over to them while the rest of us walked over to my boyfriend.

"Hey, man. Anne told us about what happened to your stepmom. We're all extremely sorry." Dylan said to him before he looked him square in the eye.

"I WASN'T SINGING THAT SONG BECAUSE OF THAT, YOU IDIOT! I'VE SUFFERED MORE THAN JUST THAT LOSS!" He yelled, and my hunch was confirmed.

"Baby, please. Tell us what else is bothering you. Tell me." I said with a pleading eye.

"You guys wanna know why I wear these sunglasses?" He calmly asked as Chase and Jennifer came over with his half-sisters.

"They hide SO MUCH!" He said as he shoved everything off of the table he was standing next to. "I wear them because of-" He started before ripping his sunglasses off of his face to reveal his blood red eyes. "-THIS!" He finished, making everyone but our group look at him. "You guys have absolutely NO FUCKING CLUE how bad it was for me. Every day when I went to school… these kids would… attack me! Whenever they had the chance, they'd pick on me! Beat me up, spit on me, call me names…"

We all remained silent as Chris began to yell louder.

"Every. Single. Day, the kids would… I had to put up with that my entire life! Every day when Tess, Emmy, and I got home, we would tell our parents. Coleen believed us. Carver did not. He always thought I was overreacting. He didn't know these kids, I DID! That piece of shit was wrong in every fucking way possible!"

Chris stopped to punch the wall in anger.

"I tried covering them up with a bandana, like Anne's, hoping it would stop, but it didn't. It only made things worse. They started spreading rumors that I was blind. Blind, of all things! It got so out of hand one day… I had to go to the hospital because of those assholes! They beat me up in public, to a bloody pulp! I would've died, had the paramedics not gotten to me in time. I was stuck on my ass in a fucking hospital bed for two goddamn weeks… That's when I started wearing my sunglasses…"

I looked at Chris with horror. How could anyone put the man I love through that much abuse?

"Sometimes, when I think about my past, I just… just wanna…"

I knew he was reaching his peak, so I opened up my arms and he fell into them and started sobbing very hard into my chest. We both dropped to our knees and I was fighting back tears myself.

"Jesus Christ." I heard Chase say.

I started rubbing Chris's back as he kept sobbing into my chest. "It's OK. Let it out, honey." I said. He only cried harder in my chest.

"Damn…" Kenny muttered.

"I know how bad it hurts, baby." I said to him, causing him to look at me.

"You do?" He asked me. I nodded my head as I took my bandana off and pushed my bangs away from my face. "My story is the exact same as yours, Chris. Down to the last detail." I said as I turned to show everyone my eyes.

"Then you understand the pain our half-brother went through." Emily said to me and I nodded my head. I then turned my attention back to Chris, who resumed sobbing. "Shh, shh. I'm here, baby. And here's where I'll stay. By your side. No matter what. I promise." I said and he looked at me and smiled.

"Thank you so much, Annie." He said "You're welcome. I love you." I said. "I love you too." He said as we wrapped our arms around each other tightly.

"We're all here for you, bro. All of us in this room." Tess said, looking to the others for support.

"Absolutely." Clem said as everyone joined in the hug.

"Thank you all so much. You have no idea how good this makes me feel." Chris said as we all got to our feet. I then had an idea.

"Wanna hear me sing a song, baby?" I asked and he nodded his head.

"I've always loved your singing, Annie. So yes, I'd love to hear a song from you." He said. We all then walked over to the couches and I grabbed my guitar and sat down next to Chris. I hummed the tune as I started strumming my guitar.

_Tonight I'm so alone_

_This sorrow takes a hold_

_Don't leave me here so cold_

_(Never want to be so cold)_

_Your touch used to be so kind_

_Your touch used to give me life_

_I've waited all this time,_

_I've wasted so much time_

_Don't leave me alone_

_Cause I barely see at all_

_Don't leave me alone, I'm_

_Falling in the black_

_Slipping through the cracks_

_Falling to the depths can I ever go back_

_Dreaming of the way it used to be_

_Can you hear me?_

_Falling in the black_

_Slipping through the cracks_

_Falling to the depths can I ever go back_

_Falling inside the black_

_Falling inside, falling inside the black_

_You were my source of strength_

_I've traded everything_

_That I love for this one thing_

_(Stranded in the offering)_

_Don't leave me here like this_

_Can't hear me scream from the abyss_

_And now I wish for you my desire_

_Don't leave me alone_

_Cause I barely see at all_

_Don't leave me alone, I'm_

_Falling in the black_

_Slipping through the cracks_

_Falling to the depths can I ever go back_

_Dreaming of the way it used to be_

_Can you hear me?_

_Falling in the black_

_Slipping through the cracks_

_Falling to the depths can I ever go back_

_Falling inside the black_

_Falling inside, falling inside the black, black, black, black_

_(Falling in the black.)_

_(Slipping through the cracks.)_

_Falling in the black_

_Slipping through the cracks_

_Falling to the depths can I ever go back_

_Dreaming of the way it used to be_

_Can you hear me?_

_Falling in the black_

_Slipping through the cracks_

_Falling to the depths can I ever go back_

_Falling inside the black_

_Can you hear me?_

_Falling inside the black_

_Can you hear me?_

_Falling inside the black_

_Can you hear me?_

_Falling inside_

_Falling inside, falling inside_

_The black_

As soon as I finished singing, everyone started clapping. I stood up and bowed like I was at a performance. Chris chuckled at my little joke. As soon as I stood up straight, he pulled me in for a kiss. I smiled and started returning it. We kept it up until: "Get a room, you two." Tess told us.

**That's chapter eleven. I want to thank AquaDestinysEmbrace for recommending Falling Inside The Black. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12: Familiar Face**

**Chris's POV**

I saw Clem and Nick standing by the door, looking at Walter, and decided to investigate. I looked to Anne, Chase, and Dylan and decided to speak. "Guys, I think something's bothering Walter." I said, causing the three of them to look at him.

"Let's go find out." Anne suggested earning nods from the three of us. Anne took my hand as we walked down towards them. We made it to the door and stepped outside. I looked at Walter to see his back was turned to us. I then saw the survival knife Clem found in the station by the bridge.

"Hey Walter, are you alright?" Dylan asked, but Walter did not answer. "Clem, what happened?" Anne asked, but just before she could answer, we noticed the wind turbine was picking up speed.

Luke, Kenny, Tess, Sarita, and Carlos came running out.

"Walt, what's going on?" Kenny asked, but Walter still didn't answer. I pointed to the wind turbine and told him it was picking up speed. "This storm's got it spinning out of control!" He said. "That sound's gonna attract walkers!" He added. "We've got to shut it down now!" I said, earning a nod in agreement from the bearded man.

"Nick, help me carry the guns!" Carlos ordered as he and Nick rushed back inside.

A moment later, they came back with guns. Nick handed Clem, Tess, and Anne Glock 17s while Chase and I took Colt M1911s from Carlos.

"That thing's a damn dinner bell!" Kenny growled as he grabbed a rifle and rushed towards the wind turbine. We quickly followed after him.

Suddenly, there was a large boom in the distance. "What the hell was that?" I asked. We all then turned to see the lights at the ski lodge went out.

"Dammit! Transformer must've gone!" Kenny said. "Gotta check it! I could use a hand!"

"I'll go with you." Luke said. "I'm going with you." Sarita said as she stepped up.

Kenny shook his head. "No. It's too dangerous. Rest of you, get this thing offline!" He ordered before he and Luke took off. Sarita opened the door and we all gathered around the panel, but we could barely see a thing.

"Does anyone know how to do this?" Carlos asked. Sarita shrugged.

"Nope. Sorry." Dylan said with a shrug.

Anne sighed. "Great…"

"I can do it." Clem said. "Okay, we'll watch your back." I said with a nod.

"Nick, Chase, scan the trees with me." Carlos ordered as he, Nick, and Chase stepped away to observe the trees. Clementine stepped up to the turbine and pulled out a lighter and it as a light, illuminating the panel. She took a key off a hook and placed the key in a red button and pushed it forward.

We then looked up and saw that the turbine had slowed down, and eventually, stopped completely. Anne and I grinned.

"Nice one, Clem!" We praised. Our grins fell as we observed the area around us.

"Somethin' ain't right." Nick said softly.

"Yeah…" Tess agreed.

"It's quiet." Anne muttered.

"Too quiet." I said.

My ears then picked snarls. I whirled around to see lurkers, or "walkers" as Kenny and Clem called them, staggering out of the bushes not fifty feet from us.

_"Aw crap."_ I thought.

I gripped my gun tightly as I held it out in front of me.

"We don't have much ammo for this…" Tess pointed out.

"We gotta get back to the lodge." Nick said. Dylan turned around and gasped. "They're behind us!" He exclaimed as he pulled out his gun. "Shit! We're boxed in!" I shouted as I cocked my gun. We all then began shooting at the walkers coming near us.

Anne shot one walker in the head before shooting the next one, hitting it straight in the forehead as dark blood spurted out of the bullet hole. I heard Clementine gasp as she quickly shot a walker in the head before quickly ducking behind a rock.

"CHRIS, LOOK OUT!" I heard Tess shout. I turned around and saw a walker less than six feet in front of me. "SHIT!" I yelled as a gunshot rang out and the walker collapsed. I looked to see that Chase had shot it. "I owe you one, Chase!" I acknowledged and he nodded his head. Anne and I then turned on a heel and split up. We started running towards the lodge when we both stopped to see Clementine hiding behind a boulder shooting at walkers. She managed to get a few, but then her gun clicked.

"CARLOS, CLEM'S OUT!" I shouted to the Hispanic man just as three walkers were closing in on Clem. Anne took out one, while Carlos and I took out the other two.

"RUN, CLEM!" Anne shouted. A walker almost got Carlos, but he threw it off him, shooting it in the head.

"Keep moving! Get to the lodge!" He exclaimed as we made a run for it.

Adrenaline pumped through my legs as I dashed to the lodge. I turned around and shot at a few walkers, backing away in the process. Suddenly, I heard a 'click'.

"DAMMIT! I'M OUT!" I shouted as I pulled out my machete and sliced through the walker.

I then tripped and fell on my back. I quickly sat up and started scooting away from the walker, but it kept getting closer. "SHIT!" I shouted.

The walker snarled, baring its teeth as it reached towards me, ready to sink its teeth into my flesh.

Suddenly, a gunshot rang out through the air. The walker ceased moving and collapsed at my feet. I scooted further away from it, gasping for breath. "Jesus Christ!" I said.

I looked up to see Emily held a rifle in her hand and she started running to me. She held out her hand and hoisted me to my feet. "Thanks, sis." I praised. "You got it." She acknowledged.

We then made a mad dash towards the lodge as Carlos suddenly exclaimed "EVERYONE, GET INSIDE!"

I looked to my right and saw walkers stumbling towards us. Carlos and Walter fired at a walker. Chase, Tess, and Dylan joined in.

Suddenly, we heard rapid fire and the walkers collapsed one by one.

We turned to the forest to see a man with a brown coat walking out of it. I gritted my teeth in extreme hatred. Carver has found us.

There were three people following him carrying AK-47s. Carver had that stupid smirk of his on his face as he walked up to us. I looked at my half-sisters to see they were as furious as I was.

"Howdy, folks." He casually greeted. His men surrounded us and held us at gunpoint. I recognized two of them as Troy and Johnny, two of the guards from the community. The third looked familiar to me… red hair… brown vest… wait a minute…

"BONNIE?!" Tess, Emily, Anne, and I exclaimed simultaneously.

Bonnie gave us a look of sadness before looking away. Carver stepped up to Carlos, with that stupid smirk still on his face.

"Where's Rebecca?" He calmly asked. Carlos just spat in his face as a response. Nice one, Carlos…

Carver just wiped the spit away. "It's nice to see you, too." Carver said sarcastically before punching Carlos in the face.

"CARLOS!" Tess gasped as Carlos staggered from the blow. All of a sudden, Sarah came rushing outside. She darted past Carver and hugged Carlos tightly. "Sarah, get behind us." Anne said, glaring at Carver. Sarah hid behind Carlos as Carver pointed at the lodge.

"Inside." He ordered. Carver's other two henchmen pointed their assault rifles at us, forcing us towards and into the lodge. Bonnie gave an impressed whistle as she glanced around.

"Look at this place…"

I was then forced down on my knees and was placed between Anne and my half-sisters as our wrists were bound behind our backs.

"Johnny, cover that window." Bonnie told Johnny as he walked over to the window near the fireplace. I turned to Tess.

"Where's Clementine?" I whispered.

"I don't know." She whispered back.

Carver then walked over to me and my half-sisters. We all glared at him intensely. He bent down and placed a hand on my shoulder.

"I've finally found you, my boy. Now we can finally-" He started before I bit his hand. He jerked it back quickly.

"DON'T FUCKING TOUCH ME OR MY HALF-SISTERS!" I roared. He ignored me and turned to Anne with that same stupid smirk, placing his hands on his hips.

"Well, if it isn't the little music girl…"

She let an animal-like growl escape her throat. "Go to hell, you fucking bastard…" She snarled.

My eyes widened as I silently told her to 'be quiet', but she ignored me.

Carver stepped away from us and looked around the lodge for a moment before he picked Carlos up and punched him in the stomach.

"DAD!" Sarah exclaimed as her father fell to the ground. Carver stared down at him. "Listen. I'm only gonna ask you once. Where's Rebecca?" Carver asked.

Carlos, groaning, got up to his knees and looked at Sarah. "Sarah, look at me." He said gently. Sarah, though slightly panicked, did. "It's gonna be okay."

Right after he said that, Carver took his hand and bent one of his fingers back, breaking it. I looked at Anne to see her cringe at the sound.

Carlos let out a groan of pain as Carver threw his hand down. Carlos cradled it as Carver glanced around the lodge.

"Rebecca! Rebecca, our baby deserves to be raised in a place of safety! I know you're out there. And Alvin. And Luke. And the girls. This is real simple. You want this over quick, you all play nice and show your faces."

"Don't hurt my dad! Please!" Sarah cried.

Carver then broke another one of Carlos's fingers, making him scream in pain.

"DAD!" Sarah screamed. "Sarah, don't look! J-Just don't look!" Anne said, trying to calm her down.

"Fuck you." Carlos growled at Carver. "Shoot him! Somebody shoot him!"

Carver grabbed him by the hair and held a knife to his throat.

"Say goodbye, Carlos." Carver said with a smirk. He then looked up. "You never did listen. Let's see if I can get your attention…"

I was past my breaking point.

"You take joy in this shit, Bill?! DO YOU?!" I bellowed, causing him to look at me. "It's 'Dad' to you." He sternly told me. I scoffed. "YOU WERE NEVER MY FATHER!" I roared, scaring everyone, except him. "You sat on the sidelines for 15 years while I was beaten senseless. Yet you act like it never happened. Tess, Emily, and Coleen were the only ones there for me! YOU WEREN'T! Because of what happened to me, I ended up in the ER! You always thought I was overreacting!" I screamed.

"And you're still overreacting." He said.

"I. AM. NOT! I HATE YOU!" I yelled.

"Take that back right now, young man." He ordered, but I shook my head.

"You disappoint me." He said. "Felling's mutual." I shot back. "YOU'RE DEAD TO ME!" I shouted, making everyone look at me in shock.

Troy came to push me back down, but I jerked away from him. "Keep your hands off me." I said with venom in my voice. I then got back down on my knees as Bec and the others showed themselves. Carver smiled and threw Carlos to the ground. "Ah, there you are…"

As she and Alvin walked down the stairs, Carver caressed Bec's cheek. I wanted to gag at the sight. That lousy, miserable piece of…

"You alright?"

"Fuck you, Bill!" Bec spat out as Alvin was forced to his knees.

"Tess…" I whispered. She turned to me. "Yeah?" She asked.

"My Sai. Can you reach it?"

She looked at my bound hands and saw the dagger. "I'll try…" She said as she tried to reach for it. But, Troy turned around at that moment, so she pulled her hands back.

Suddenly, a gunshot rang out and Johnny fell to the ground with a bullet hole in his head.

"Kenny!" Sarita gasped.

Carver frowned before marching over to Walter and picking him up. He brought him up to the window and shoved him to the ground before shooting him in the head execution style.

Anne gasped. "NO! WALTER! GOD DAMN IT! NO!"

Chase growled. "YOU SON OF A BITCH, I'LL KILL YOU!" He roared.

Carver hid behind a pillar as he held his pistol. "That's for our man! Now I didn't wanna do this, but you're leavin' me no other choice! So here's what's gonna happen; I'm gonna march another one of your friends out here and put a bullet in the back of their head. Or you can give up now. Your choice." He said. Kenny responded by firing at him, but hit the pillar. Carver then picked up Alvin and smiled. "Hi, Alvin."

"Bill, no!" Bec exclaimed as she rushed forward, but was stopped by Troy pointing his assault rifle at her. "Tell them to stop! Kenny, stop!"

"Remember George?" Carver asked as he held the pistol to Alvin's head.

Anne jumped up and rushed towards them. Carver saw and hit her in the chest with the pistol, knocking the wind out of her. I tried to get to my feet, but Troy stopped me and forced me back to my knees. "One of these days, I'm gonna kill you, you sumbitch." I said to Troy, while he just laughed. "I'd like to see you try." He retorted.

Anne coughed and fell to her knees. "F-Fuck…" She groaned out as she coughed. Carver then threw Alvin down and picked her up. I had a feeling of horror.

"Not a smart move, Anne…" He chuckled as he carried her over to the window and held the gun to her temple.

"NO! NOT HER!" Tess screamed.

"GODDAMN IT, KENNY, LUKE! STOP!" I screamed, hoping they would hear me.

Moments later, Kenny, Clem, and Emily walked into the doors holding their hands up in surrender.

Carver went wide eyed as he saw Emily was amongst us. "Why, Emmy?" He asked, but she scowled at him. "DON'T CALL ME THAT EVER AGAIN, MURDERER!" She snarled, surprising him, me, and Tess. Anne was brought back over to us by Troy.

"Honey, are you okay?" I asked her.

She panted slightly. "That… was WAY too close…"

Carver looked at the two of us and smirked. "Well, well, well. Look who finally got together." He said, chuckling a little as he did. "SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH, ASSHOLE!" I shouted.

"Where's Luke?" He asked. "Finally cut and run, huh? Why am I not surprised?" Carver asked before looking at Carlos. "I warned ya not to follow him, and look where he's led you."

He then turned to Bec. "But you're safe now. We're going home. As a family."

I snarled at that comment. THIS is his idea of a family?!

"Alright, round 'em up. We're heading back to camp."

One by one, they started picking us up and led us outside. On the way, I cast Bonnie a glare of intense hatred, and she looked away. _"Yeah, you better look away, you traitor!"_ I thought to myself. Troy walked to my side and glared at me. I responded by spitting in his eye. Carver saw this and stopped Troy before he could land a blow to me. Then, I saw a large truck at the bottom of the hill. We were led to the back. Troy opened the door and pointed his assault rifle at us.

Reluctantly, we climbed inside. I looked over my shoulder, seeing Carver smiling at his victory.

"We're on our way."

Then the door closed, leaving us in pitch black darkness.

**That's chapter twelve. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13: Welcome 'Home'**

**Anne's POV**

We all sat in silence as the truck drove down the trail. It hit a bump in the road every once in a while, making us bounce slightly.

"If we get out of this prison again, the first thing I'm gonna do is kill that piece of shit I called a father, I swear to God." Chris said harshly. "Honey, please don't." I pleaded. "I've made my decision." He said. "But…" I started until: "End of discussion." He sternly said. I looked away, trying not to cry. I sniffled and he realized his mistake. "I'm sorry, baby. I don't know what got into me." He said, and I felt better.

After that, the vehicle jerked to a halt. Then the door opened a few moments later, blinding us all.

"I hate being in the spotlight, thank you." Chris snapped. "Shut your trap, boy." Troy said. "Don't think just because my hands are bound that I can't kick your little stupid ass, Troy." Chris shot back. He never was afraid of Troy.

"Enough! Those who gotta piss better go and do it now." Carver said as Clem, Sarah, and I climbed out of the truck. I glared at Troy as Sarah headed into the woods.

"Hey, you mind givin' us girls some privacy?" I asked, glaring at him. He just glared right back at me and used his rifle to shove me into the woods. "Just get going. We ain't got all day, girlies." He replied. Talk about rude!

I stood next to Clem, who was looking at a tree. I could see she was staring at a butterfly. I remained silent as I watched her. _"Man, I haven't seen anything like that in a while…"_ I thought to myself.

Clementine reached out to touch it, but it flew away. I decided to speak up.

"So, you don't have to go?"

She shook her head. "No. You?"

I smirked slightly. "No. I was just getting tired of sitting in there." I replied.

She smiled slightly. My smirk then turned to a frown as I remembered my boyfriend's stern words. I was starting to fight back tears. Clem noticed this.

"Is he known to do things like that?" She asked me.

I shook my head. "No. Normally, it takes a lot to set him off. But recently…" I said, trailing off and sniffling.

"I'm sure he didn't mean to talk to you like that, Anne." Sarah said to me, making me smile. "Thanks, Sarah."

"No problem. And thank you guys for coming with me. It's scary out here." She thanked us. "I know they made you come with me but… I thought they were actually gonna make Dad come with me. Thanks." She said.

Clem smiled at her and said "Yeah. We're friends. Friends always stick together."

I smiled at that. Then of course, Troy just HAD to ruin the moment.

"You about done over there?!"

I turned to glare at him. "Yeah, we are. Just give us a fucking minute." I snapped.

The three of us then walked back to the truck.

"Everything come out alright, girls?" Troy asked us.

I glared at him for that. _"Oh, you did NOT just ask that."_ I thought, still glaring at Troy.

I stomped on his foot. "Pervert!" I mumbled. Bonnie and Troy then started tying our wrists back up. Carver then pulled out a radio and pushed a button.

"Well, we're on our way, probably about thirty minutes out. Make sure everyone's prepped. Emotions might be running high. Carver out." He said as Troy roughly grabbed my wrists and started binding them. "If I find out you've been wasting fuel to keep that fucking heater going, I'll make you walk back." Carver said to Troy.

"Nope. Froze my ass off. Just like you told me to." Troy said.

Carver noticed Clementine staring at him and frowned. "It ain't polite to listen to other folks' conversations. Didn't anyone ever tell you that? Where are your manners?"

"I used to have a walkie talkie like that." Clem brought up.

"Oh, really? What happened to it? Cause you can't have this one."

"None of your business."

Carver walked over to her and slapped her across the face.

"Leave her alone!" I said.

"You don't wanna test me, girl. I'll pass every time."

"Stop!" Sarah said. Carver glared at her, and she hung her head.

"Get the girls in back with the rest of them. We've got a bit of a drive ahead of us." Carver said.

Troy opened the door and pointed a gun at us.

"In."

Reluctantly, we climbed back in with the others.

"Are you guys okay?" Sarita asked as we sat down. I sat between my boyfriend and Tess as Clem sat next to Carlos and Sarah.

Kenny noticed the sad expression Clementine had. "The hell did he do to you?" He asked with concern. "Hey! Did he hurt you?!"

He then turned to Troy. "Hey! HEY!"

Troy slammed the door shut, leaving us in darkness once again.

My eye had readjusted to the darkness as the truck started moving again. We all remained silent as we exchanged glances at each other every once in a while. I rested my head on my boyfriend's shoulder and he rested his head on my head. I then closed my eye in sadness, remembering what happened to Walter. Tess was looking down at her feet, probably thinking about what happened back at the lodge.

Finally, Kenny decided to speak. "Alright, we gotta do something. Anyone got anything sharp? Anything?"

We all remained silent. Kenny turned to us. "What about you two? You have those salad tongs, right?"

Chris sighed with annoyance. "They're Sais, and we don't have them on us." He explained. "They took our weapons, remember?" I reminded him.

"We need to get these bindings off! Hey! Clem, help me find something to get these off. Anything sharp that could cut these..." Kenny requested.

"And what good is that gonna do?" Bec asked.

"I'm with her on this one." Emily agreed.

Kenny's gaze snapped to the two of them. "The hell is wrong with you people? We gotta get outta here!"

"Like what?" Clem asked.

"Clementine." Chris calmly said.

"What do you mean, like what? Something sharp. Anything that can help! A fuckin'- I don't know. Anything!" He said. "We're in a fuckin' precarious position here! We gotta do something about it!"

"Settle down, Kenny. They took everything. We have to keep a level head." Carlos calmly said.

"He's right. You don't know Bill like we do." Bec agreed.

"Bill? This whole time it's Carver, Carver, Carver, now he's fucking Bill?" Kenny asked. Bec closed her eyes.

"Oh, I see what it is. Y'all are just getting a ride home, aren't ya? That's what's goin' on here." Kenny snapped.

"Don't ever call it that again." Chris barked, making Kenny look at him in anger.

"I'd stay out of this, boy." Kenny warned.

"Newsflash: I ain't a boy." Chris snarled.

Kenny rolled his eyes. "Oh right… YOU'RE a man."

Tess looked up. "Both of you knock it off! Arguing isn't gonna help any!" She snapped.

"You don't understand. He's different… he's worse." Bec said.

"The fuck are you talkin' about?" Kenny asked.

"He wants to punish us."

Clementine chimed in. "What d'you mean worse?"

Kenny nodded. "He's a fucking psychopath now!" He agreed. Carlos glared at him. "You have NO IDEA what you're dealing with!" He snapped.

"Oh, he gave us a pretty good goddamn idea back at the lodge." Chase spoke up. "I don't intend to sit around and let that happen to the rest of us!" Kenny agreed. "I'm tryin' to help!"

"I'm sure Walter really appreciated your help." Carlos retorted. Kenny looked down sadly at the mention of his dead friend's name. What happened next surprised me. Chris let an animal-like growl escape him.

"That's not fair! You're blaming him for the actions of a madman!" Sarita defended. Chris stomped his foot to gain everyone's attention. "Sarita's right, Carlos. Kenny sure as hell ain't the one to blame, okay? That snarling piece of shit I called 'Dad' is to blame, clear?" He said.

"I am pointing out that, regardless of intent, there are consequences to rash actions. Something that he seems to be misreading as capitulation." Carlos pointed out.

"Bull-fucking-shit, Carlos! He did what he judged to be right! Need I remind you what almost happened to Anne?!" Chris furiously snarled, earning a glare from the Hispanic man.

"We have to do something!" Kenny said.

"Kenny..." Sarita said.

"You can't reason with him." Bec sighed.

Tess scoffed. "Who can these days?" She snapped.

"Thank you, Tess." Chris praised. Clearly she voiced his thoughts.

Kenny's eyes wandered over to something. "Oh shit. Jackpot!" He exclaimed.

I looked to my right and saw that he was looking at a sharp, jagged part of a broken pipe next to Clem. He stood up, walked over to it, and started using it to cut the bindings.

"Sit down! You're going to get us all killed!" Carlos warned but Kenny ignored him. "Y'all don't know what you're talking about. We get cooped up in some kennel like a buncha fuckin' dogs, it's over."

"You don't know that." Bec said

"Yeah?" Kenny asked. "Well, I've been in this situation before. You ever been a prisoner?"

"We've all been prisoners! Why do you think we've left?" Carlos asked.

"Stop fighting! Please…" Clem piped up.

Kenny then cut the ropes off. He smiled. "Alright, now we're talkin'!"

He stood up. Carlos frowned and said "Carver will be on the other side of that door with ten people."

"Both of you shut up, okay? You're scaring Sarah." Chris pointed out as Sarah started whimpering.

"There, there, baby… it's okay. Everything's gonna be fine." Bec soothingly said.

"It'll be okay, don't worry." I told Sarah.

Carlos then sighed. "At this point, maybe Luke is the only hope we have."

"If he was gonna do something, he'd've done it by now." Kenny argued.

"Who knows what he's dealing with. Anything can happen out there." Bec pointed out.

"I'll tell you what happened: he abandoned us."

"Like hell. Okay, I've known Luke for a long time, and I know he ain't that kind of person." Chris snapped. "Well, I know he ain't here." Kenny shot back.

"He may not be around, but he wouldn't just leave us behind." Bec added.

"Luke is not that type of guy!" Tess defended. "That guy is a flake. I could tell the second I set eyes on him." Kenny growled.

"You don't fucking know Luke like we do!" Chris snarled as he stood up.

"Boys, please calm down. Please…" Sarita calmly told them.

"Luke would never abandon us!" I exclaimed.

"Luke will help us." Clem said as she looked up at Kenny. The bearded man frowned. "Oh yeah? When? After that crazy fuck's killed us all?!"

Clementine looked slightly scared. Kenny had an apologetic look. "Hey look, Clem…" He gently began, but was cut off when the truck suddenly jerked. Carlos and I looked up at the ceiling.

"We're close." Carlos said.

"Okay. Let's do this."

Tess sighed. "Kenny, they have guns." She pointed out.

"She's right. What exactly do you expect to do?" I asked.

"I'm gonna punch the first sonuvabitch I see. Then I'm gonna take his gun and use it to shoot the NEXT sonuvabitch I see." He stated.

Chris scoffed. "Great plan. Just rush in and try shooting your way out. Fucking brilliant plan, Kenny." He said sarcastically.

"Well, I don't see you comin' up with any bright ideas, Vampire." Kenny snapped, and Tess and Emily went wide eyed.

"You shouldn't have said that." Chris snarled and I knew he was gonna attack, so I decided to intervene.

"Baby, don't do it. Please, for me?" I pleaded as he started to calm down. Eventually, he completely simmered down and I kissed him on the cheek for that.

"Just sit down." Carlos barked.

"Shut up, Doc! This ain't your call!" Kenny barked back.

"Both of you shut up!" Emily snapped.

"She's right. Kenny, your plan's stupid." I said.

"Well, what's your plan, Cyclops?" He asked. I then stood up on my feet. "Call me that again… I DARE YOU!" I said with a growl when I felt Chris pull me back to my knees. "Annie, don't, okay? He's not worth it." He said. As I sat down on my knees again, I rested my head on my boyfriend's shoulder again.

Kenny then looked down at Clem. "Hey, just... if something happens, just help out, okay? Don't, you know, get yourself hurt or nothin', but any help'd be good." He paused for a moment before he gently said "Hey, Clem. Look at me. You trust me, right?"

"Kenny! Please, just... Just, listen to them. They know him... what he's capable of." Sarita told him.

Chris looked at her. "Thank you, Sarita." He said.

Clementine nodded. "Yeah, okay... I trust you. I'll... I'll do what I can."

"All right. It's okay, to be scared, but we gotta do this." He assured her. He then turned around and faced the door as I heard the truck start backing up. "Alright. Everybody re-"

He suddenly was cut off when the truck jerks to a halt, causing him to slam into the door facefirst before falling down on his back.

Chris and I cringed as he landed on his back. "Ooh… Timber…" Chris said halfheartedly, earning a slight giggle from me.

"Kenny!" Sarita exclaimed as she rushed to his side. "Kenny, are you okay?"

"Is he okay?" Bec asked.

"I think so…" Sarita replied. "Oh… what hit me?" Kenny groaned. I looked at Tess to see she was biting her lip, clearly trying not to snicker. Carlos looked away. "Probably for the best." He muttered, earning a snicker from my boyfriend.

I heard Troy grumbling outside. "Goddamn breaks ain't working for shit!" He growled as he opened the door, blinding us with the sudden light. I squinted, seeing him, Bonnie, and Tavia, another guard, standing there with assault rifles.

"Alright, up and at 'em." Tavia ordered, scowling at my boyfriend.

"Nice to see you again, too, Tavia." He said sarcastically while glaring at her. "Just move your ass." She ordered. We all reluctantly stood up and walked out the door. Troy saw Kenny's unbound wrists and frowned. "The fuck? How'd you get your restraints off? C'mere."

We were led away from the truck. I then heard Carver's voice come on the PA system as he started to make a speech.

_"We've got some familiar faces back with us tonight. Now, I understand that some of you are confused as to why we'd bring these people back when they left us as they did."_

Tavia scoffed. "I think I've got an idea."

I heard Chris let an animal-like snarl escape his mouth while I glared at her snide comment.

_"Now, it might not come all out at once… but time will heal these wounds… so be patient with them until it does… and take solace in knowing that they're here to make our home better place."_

I inwardly scoffed. This 'home' feels more like a prison.

We entered a hall that with shelves filled with food. There were some guards on top of them glaring down at us.

Nothing's changed since my boyfriend and I left… nothing's changed at all…

I looked up, seeing Carver's office. I see him at the microphone looking at us as he spoke. Chris glared at him with an intense amount of hatred.

_"All these feelings you have of anger… betrayal… hate… they're all valid. No one needs to forget what they did… but we do have to find it in our hearts to forgive them."_

Clem's eyes wandered over to the over to the shelves stocked with food. "Look how much food they have…"

"Oh, I hope you're not saying what I think you're saying…" Kenny muttered.

_"As many of you already know, a large herd of lurkers gathers just south of us…"_

"Come on, we need you for something." Troy said to Carlos. "Can't it wait until morning?" Carlos requested. "We're all exhausted."

"Just come the fuck on." Troy ordered. Reluctantly, Carlos followed him. Sarah's eyes widened. "I need him. I need my dad." She said as she stopped walking. Chris and I stopped as well. "I can't… he's… he looks after me."

Troy walked up to us and forced us to keep moving.

"He'll be back." Chris told her.

"When?" She asked.

"We don't know, but he will come back, Sarah." I agreed.

"Thanks, guys…" She said gratefully.

"Why don't you stay by our side until he returns?" Chris offered, and she nodded her head.

We ended up in 'The Yard', where anyone who needs to earn the camp's trust back are put. "Wow. Welcome to hell." I muttered, earning a snicker from Chris.

_"… And with the added manpower joining us this evening, I have no doubt that we will continue to…"_

Bonnie knelt down and unlocked the door leading to the yard. "Make sure y'all stay off the fence. Bill can see if you're messing around with it." She told us gently. She cast a sad glance at me and Chris, who now felt guilty for his cold treatment towards her.

_"… it's no longer enough to survive… it is our obligation to make this community a beacon of hope…"_

I pretended to gag, earning a chuckle from Chris, and a giggle from Sarah.

Bonnie then opened the door up. We all stepped through it and into the yard. Chris cast her an apologetic look, and she grinned.

_"To provide a light… a bright light. Bright enough to shine in all this darkness. So that is what we'll do."_

Troy, Tavia, and Bonnie started taking our restraints off.

"Y'all best get some rest, cause there ain't gonna be much for you tomorrow. You're gonna be working hard." Troy said with a smirk.

_"God, I wanna punch this little prick square in the mouth."_ I thought to myself.

"That's for you…" Bonnie said to Bec as she pointed to over to a mattress.

"Yeah, it would be. Fuckin' Bill. Keeps me out in the cold, but at least I'll be comfortable." Bec said sarcastically as she crossed her arms.

We all then heard a cheerful voice. "Hey, guys."

I looked away from the door and gasped. A man with one arm wearing a white fishing vest over a blue shirt was smiling at us. My eye widened. It's…

"REGGIE?!" Tess, Emily, Chris, Bec, and I exclaimed. The five of us hugged him.

"I'm so sorry… I'm so sorry… What did they do to you...?" Bec asked as we pulled away.

"This could have been worse, trust me. I'm lucky to be alive." Reggie said. He then turned to Chris and me with a smile.

"How's it going, Raggedy Anne?" He asked me. I crossed my arms, but smiled anyway. "How many times have I told you not to call me that?"

"Too many to count. How about you, Chris Kyle?" He asked my boyfriend. He matched my movements. "Not bad. Anne and I are together now." He replied, and Reggie smirked. "About damn time." He said, chuckling. The two of us joined him. Damn, I missed this guy!

"It's my fault…" Nick said, referring to Reggie's arm.

"No, it's really not. I would tell you if this was. This happened well after you guys left." Reggie said.

Tess, Chris, and Emily nodded their heads. "He got bit on the arm, but they chopped it off." Tess explained.

"… They got me working outside. Lurker snuck up on me when I was hammering something. Luckily, they took the arm off quick. Saved my life." Reggie explained. "Yeah, I'm the one who took the arm off." Chris said.

"That's awful… I'm so sorry…" Bec said.

"Look, it was my choice to help you guys." Reggie said.

Just then, Tavia stepped through the door. "Alvin, Carver wants you in his office."

"What? Why?" Alvin inquired. Tavia frowned. "Don't make this difficult. It's too late for that."

"No, please-"

"It's okay, Bec." Alvin told Bec as he gave her a reassuring smile. "Just get some rest. If he wanted to do somethin' to me, he'd had done it already. I'll be fine."

With that, he turned to Tavia. "Let's see what he wants."

Troy then stepped up to Reggie. "Hey! Reggie!" He said.

"Oh… hey, Troy." Reggie said.

"Don't go fuckin' up now. Bill's real close to lettin' you outta here. You make sure things stay nice and quiet out here tonight, and I'll be sure to let Bill know just how helpful you were."

Reggie nodded. "Yeah, you can count on me. Thanks, Troy."

"Don't mention it." Troy replied with a frown as he and Bonnie left and pulled the door closed. We were all silent as we turned back to Reggie.

"Oh, right. Let me introduce you. We were with them when we got caught." Bec said.

"Hey, I'm Reggie." He said as he walked up to the others.

"That's Sarita…"

Sarita smiled. "Hello."

"And that's Kenny…"

Kenny uncrossed his arms. "Heya."

"And that's Chase and his brother Dylan."

"What's up?" Chase greeted.

"And Jennifer and Rebecca."

"Howdy." Jennifer greeted.

"We call her Bec now to keep from getting confused." I said, referring to Bec.

Reggie then turned to Clementine and smiled. "Hello! Who are you?"

Clem was silent for a moment. "This freaks you out." Reggie said, referring to his missing arm. "It's OK. Freaks me out too, sometimes. I'm used to it."

"My name's Clementine." Clem said.

Reggie smiled. "It's very nice to meet you, Clementine." He grinned as he held his hand out for her to shake, which she did. "Hey, where's Carlos?"

"Carver's got him lookin' at some folks right now." I explained.

"Oh… okay. Good. What about Pete and Marie?"

We all stayed silent. Reggie's smile faded and he quickly caught on.

"Can you save for the morning?" I heard someone ask. We turned to see an African American with a chunk of his ear missing wearing a grey hoodie with blue jeans sitting up and glaring at us.

"Some of us gotta be up early." He grumbled.

"Who's that?" Clementine asked. "I don't know." Sarah replied. "I don't recognize the voice." Bec added. "No problem! Sorry about that." Reggie apologized. The man groaned, laid back down, and put his pillow over his head.

Reggie turned back to us. "Okay, that's Mike. He's kind of a dick when he's tired."

Tess smirked. "Sounds like someone me and my half-siblings know." She said, turning to me.

I frowned and lightly punched her arm. "Shut up…"

"But… like I said, he and Chris Kyle here saved my life, so… I put up with that shit. Bill put him to work outside the wall with me." Reggie said.

"I'm so sorry…" Bec said.

"Stop with all the sorry. It was my choice. Besides, he said once you were all caught, he'd let me rejoin the group… so, I'm glad you're here." He said before he smiled. "I'm just joking."

Bec smiled. "I know…"

"I mean, he did say that, but I'm not happy about it." Reggie admitted.

"Who's she?" I heard Clementine ask.

"Who?" Chris and I asked. I followed her gaze and found a girl sitting at a picnic table not too far from our position looking at us. She looked to be in late teens to early twenties. She had short, cropped brown hair. She wore a brown jacket over a green shirt with blue jeans. Okay, I definitely didn't recognize her.

The girl saw all of us looking at her and stood up. "Oh, yeah. Okay, so she's fuckin' weird. They found her sneaking around outside of the camp covered in guts and just, like, the grossest shit." Reggie explained as the girl walked over to a spot near the 'bunk beds' and laid down. "It's probably best not to stare." Bec told Clementine.

As Reggie kept talking, my gaze wandered over to a corner of the yard. I saw a woman in her early thirties sitting there. She had brown hair and bistre eyes. She wore a dark purple zipped up jacket with blue jeans and brown boots. I could see her looking at us, causing me to raise an eyebrow.

Who is she? I've never seen her around here before...

"What about her? Who's she?" Clem questioned, gaining the others' attention. We all saw the woman in the corner and she blinked when she noticed us.

"Hm?" Reggie asked, but as soon as he saw the woman, he blinked. "Ah, her. That's Evonne. They found her outside the fence and brought her in here a few weeks ago. She told us she was looking for someone, but wouldn't say who..." He explained with a shrug.

The woman, Evonne, then walked up to us. "Hello..." She greeted.

"Hey..." Chris said with a smile, because I locked my hand with his.

"Are these the people you told me about, Reggie?" She asked. Reggie nodded.

"Yeah, but some of them are new." Reggie explained. "Everyone, this is Evonne. Evonne, this is Chris and his half-sisters Tess and Emily..."

Chris smiled, and nodded. "Hey..."

"The girl next it him is Anne."

"Hi." I nodded.

"Sarah, Nick, and Rebecca..." He continued. The three nodded or waved hello.

"Chase and his brother Dylan..."

Chase nodded. "What's up?"

"Jennifer and Rebecca..."

"Howdy." Jennifer said. "We're calling the other Rebecca 'Bec' so we don't get confused." I explained to Evonne.

"Kenny and Sarita..."

Sarita smiled. "Hello."

"And Clementine." Reggie finished as he gestured to Clem with his remaining arm. Evonne nodded.

"It's very nice to meet you all." She said.

"So, Carver brought you here?" I asked.

She nodded. "Yes... I was outside the wall, and this loud guy, Troy, started yelling at me and held me at gunpoint. After talking to this man, Bill, I think... Troy just shoved me in here, telling me that I'll have to work, and I've been here for a while, now..."

Chris frowned. "Troy... That asshole..."

"Reggie mentioned that you were looking for someone..." I said.

Evonne flinched. "Yes... I've been looking for her for a while now... But I can't find her..."

She shook her head. "I need to go sit down..." She muttered before she headed over to the picnic tables that the short haired woman was once at.

As Reggie continued talking to us, I could see Evonne staring at us...

Wait, is she staring at me?

Evonne noticed that I caught her and quickly looked away. I blinked.

That was weird...

"I know how it must look, but... it's really not that bad here." Reggie said.

"Reggie…" Tess sighed.

"No, I'm serious. Where else are you gonna food like we have. We've got the canned stuff and now with the greenhouses coming along, we've got fresh food. The building's getting more and more secure all the time…" Reggie paused as he took a step away from us, then turned back around. "… mostly through forced labor, but that's only temporary. They've even got the solar panels working. When was the last time you guys had electricity, huh?"

"Well, we just came from a lodge with a wind turbine and-" Sarah started.

"It's not a competition." Reggie cut her off. "I'm just saying, it's not as bad as you think. We're building something great here, guys. A real community. Bill is making it happen. Look, I've made mistakes, and he's forgiven me."

"That doesn't make up for what he's done, Reggie! Look at what he did to my mother!" Tess spoke up as she and Emily came to Chris and I.

"Carver killed my friend Walter." Clementine said. Chase frowned. "Yeah, he took him and shot him straight in the head!" He said. I closed my eye sadly. Walter was such a good guy…

Reggie was clearly surprised by this news. "Okay, I-I don't know what happened, but maybe he had his reasons-"

"His reason is that he's a fucking monster!" Tess snapped.

"He's a crazy piece of shit!" Kenny agreed.

Reggie sighed. "Listen, I'm really close to being let back in the group. Once that happens, I can do a lot more to help you guys be more comfortable."

"Comfortable? What do you think this is?" Kenny asked as he crossed his arms. "Reggie, this place will never bring comfort to me as long as that fucktard I called a father is alive!" Chris agreed. "I just don't want you to mess things up for me. I've worked really hard to get to this point. Will you please just try not cause any trouble? At least until they release me?" Reggie requested. "Then once I'm out, I could help you more. Maybe even help get you out."

"We won't get you in trouble." Clem said.

"They're expecting me to keep things in line out here."

"Well, if Carver's such a 'great guy', I'm sure you've got nothin' to worry about." Kenny piped up. Chris glared at the bearded-man, who glared right back.

"We can talk about it more in the morning. Just have a quiet night and chat again tomorrow." Reggie suggested.

_"Are you fucking kidding me?!"_ I thought to myself.

"I can't believe what I'm hearing…" Bec muttered, voicing my thoughts.

"Look, the fact is, Bill had every right to kill me when I helped you guys out, but he didn't. Obviously, I don't know what happened while you guys were gone, but he's given me a second chance and I know he'd do the same for you."

"He didn't give Coleen a second chance! He didn't give her a chance at all!" Chris growled.

"Reggie, I don't want a second chance. I want to leave with my family. That's it." Bec said firmly.

"Your family is safer here…"

"It's not safe as long as Carver's around!" I snapped. "Yeah, he almost put a bullet in my girlfriend's head several hours ago!" Chris agreed.

Bec suddenly gasped and placed a hand on her stomach. The baby had to be kicking hard…

"I need to sit down…"

Sarita stepped up to her. "Yeah, come on. Sarah? Can you go see if there's something for her to drink?" Sarita requested.

"Okay." Sarah nodded. "Yeah, there's water over by the benches." Reggie pointed out as we all started heading in different directions. As Chris, his sisters, Nick and I left, I heard Reggie say "That didn't go as planned… should have actually made a plan…"

The five of us walked over to the bunk beds as Tess and Nick got into one of them together, as did Chris and I.

I then noticed Clementine checking out the bunk beds. "Guess it's better than the ground."

"It's not." Chris said. Clem then walked over to us. "Hey Clem." Nick greeted as he sat up. Chris, Tess, and I also sat up. "Just thinkin' about Luke. Just… there's no way he's gone. I've known him for damn near twenty years now and I can't buy it. Course I can't say the thought never crossed my mind. Things change. The whole damn world changed."

"Nick…" Tess sighed.

"I think you're right. He'd never abandon you guys." Clem said.

"You mean us guys." Chris corrected, smiling at her. "Yeah, you're one of us, now." I agreed. Clem smiled. "Yeah."

Emily smiled and patted her on the head. "I'm glad you're with us, Clem."

Nick yawned and laid back down. "Guess I oughta try and get some sleep. You guys should, too." He said. "Damn right, they're gonna ride our asses for sure tomorrow." Chris added.

"Okay."

"Night."

Clem walked away as Chris pulled me closer to him. "You okay, baby?" He asked me.

I sighed. "My guitar… it was back at the lodge…"

"I know…"

I laid my head on his chest. "I paid over eighty five bucks for that thing! Eighty five!"

He chuckled slightly. "It's okay, Anne… we can find you another one…"

I smiled slightly at his attempt to comfort me. "Thanks, sweetie…"

Just then, I heard the door open. I looked over my shoulder and saw Carlos step in. His broke fingers were now in a cast. Sarah smiled and jumped to her feet.

"Dad!" She exclaimed happily as she jumped forward and hugged him tightly. Troy scowled. "Alright, go the fuck to sleep!" He snapped as he stepped back to the door. "Troy, where's Alvin?!" Bec asked.

"Everybody get to bed!" Troy growled as he slammed the door back down and left.

Chris growled a little as he left. "Man, I hate that prick…"

"Ditto…" I muttered. Everyone started heading toward places to sleep. Kenny and Sarita got in one beside Chris and me. Dylan and Rebecca got in one above us while Chase and Jennifer got in one below us.

I laid my head against Chris's chest and closed my eye. I then let sleep get the best of me and drifted off to sleep.

**That's chapter thirteen. I apologize it took me so long to get this out. I've been busy with schoolwork and other stories, it ain't even funny. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14: Revelation and Correction**

**Chris's POV**

I awoke with a gasp. My hand subconsciously went to my right arm and stopped at the shoulder. I glanced around, seeing that I was back in the yard. I groaned.

Damn nightmares...

"Can't sleep?" I heard a voice ask. I looked up to see Evonne sitting by the fire. I nodded, left my bed, and walked over to the woman. I took a seat next to her.

"So, how'd you end up here?" I asked. Evonne sighed sadly. "I've been traveling the country looking for my daughter... 14 years now... One day, I ended up here and Troy pointed a gun at my head. Carver then put me in the yard and I've been here ever since..." She explained.

"What... happened to your daughter?" I asked.

Evonne sighed sadly again. "When she was only five weeks old... someone broke into my house... And took her away from me... Just before he escaped out the window with my daughter in his arms... I saw his face..."

She clenched her fist. "I called the police as soon as he escaped... They immediately began a search party... But found no trace of my baby girl..."

I clenched my fists. "She was kidnapped?!"

Evonne sniffled. "Y-yes... She was taken away from me... Just like that... I've been searching for 14 years, now... Now, I can only hope that she's somewhere out there..."

I gave her a look of sympathy. "I'm sorry, Evonne... What does your daughter look like?"

She pulled out a picture and handed it to me. It was a picture of a baby girl. "She's pretty..." I commented.

Evonne smiled. "Thanks. I'm proud of my work..."

I chuckled lightly, but my smile fell as I examined the picture. Something seems familiar about her...

I looked back at Anne, who was asleep, before looking back at the picture. The baby girl had brown hair... just like Anne's... and the baby's eyes were the same color as hers... One red, one green...

There were a few similarities between them... Hmm...

"Excuse me for a second." I told Evonne before I walked back to the bunks. I nudged Anne lightly, who groaned in response. "What...?" she asked sleepily.

"I need to talk to you about something, baby." I told her. She yawned and got up. "What's it about?" she asked.

"Come on..." I led her back over to Evonne and explained why Evonne was here.

"... so you've been lookin' for your daughter?" Anne questioned. Evonne nodded. "Can I... see the picture of the baby?" Anne asked.

I nodded in response and handed her the photo. As she examined it, I couldn't shake my hunch off. So I did something very unexpected.

"Can I take your bandana off, sweetie?" I asked her. She blinked in surprise. "W-why? You know how I feel about taking it off..." She muttered.

"Please? I just need to check something..."

After a moment, she sighed and reluctantly nodded. I then carefully took the bandana off and she pushed her bangs out of her face, revealing her red eye.

Evonne eyes widened slightly as she saw Anne's eyes. "M-my daughter had the same eye color as you..." She stammered.

I blinked. What...?

I looked down at the photo, then back at Anne. The baby in the picture had the same eyes as Anne, same nose, same hair...

Evonne drew in a shaky breath. "Anne... Who are your parents?"

Wait, why is she...?

"James and Eileen Marshall..." Anne replied.

As soon as those words left her mouth, Evonne paled. She gasped and held a hand up to her mouth in shock. Then, she slowly lowered it, tearing up. "Annie...?"

She started stroking her hair. "My Annie...?"

My eyes widened behind my sunglasses. What?!

Evonne suddenly let out a sob and hugged a confused Anne tightly. "Annie, I'm so sorry! I-I looked EVERYWHERE for you!" She sobbed.

Oh my god... Is she...?!

Anne, though confused, gently returned the hug. "Evonne, why are you crying?" She asked. Evonne pulled away from her and sniffled. "Y-you're my daughter, Anne!"

My eyes widened. HOLY SHIT!

Anne gasped. "WHAT?! No way! My parents are James and Eileen Marshall!" She protested. Evonne shook her head and grabbed Anne by the shoulders. "They're not your parents, they're your kidnappers!"

WHAT?!

Anne gasped again. "WHAT?! But-" She began, but Evonne cut her off. "They took you away from me when you were only five weeks old! They took you from your real family! From me! Anne... Your name isn't Anne Marshall... It's Anne Martinez..."

Both of Anne's eyes widened. "W-what?!" She gasped. "It's true, Annie... They're not your parents... Anne... Look me in the eyes..." Evonne instructed, and Anne did. "Anne... I am your mother... Your REAL mother! The ones who took you aren't your parents! You're my daughter! YOU'RE MY DAUGHTER, ANNE!"

I stood there shell-shocked. Holy shit... Evonne is Anne's mother?!

Anne stared at Evonne for a moment before she gasped. "M...M-Mom...?" She asked cautiously.

Evonne smiled, nodding as tears came out of her eyes. "Y-yes... I'm your mom, Anne!"

Anne gasped and her hand flew up to her mouth in shock as tears started to pour out of her eyes.

"MOM!" She cried as she leaped forward and hugged Evonne tightly. Evonne sobbed and hugged Anne back.

"M-MOMMY!" Anne sobbed.

"ANNIE! MY ANNIE!" Evonne cried. "I've l-looked for you for so long! And I've finally found you! Oh, sweetheart, I missed you so much!"

I stood there as I watched the mother and daughter duo embrace each other. Behind my sunglasses, a tear slipped from my eye, remembering my own mother, but I wiped it away and watched my girlfriend and her mother. I smiled slightly.

_"Baby... I'm so happy for you..."_ I thought to myself.

Tess and Emily came over to us at that point.

"What the fuck is going on that couldn't wait until morning?" Tess grumbled.

"Anne just found her mother." I replied before explaining everything to them.

After that, we all went back to our bunk beds and fell asleep.

/The Next Morning\

So… dark…

I couldn't see or hear very well.

_"Mm… what's going on?"_ I thought to myself.

"They… sleep… won't… wake them… now…"

I couldn't tell whose voice I was hearing. I was still shocked from the events from last night to think straight.

I sank deeper into our pillow.

Suddenly, I felt a foot go against my ribcage followed by "WAKE THE FUCK UP!"

My eyes flew open and I looked to see Troy looking down at us.

"Don't fuckin' kick me, asshole." I growled as Anne woke up.

"Just get up, Bill's gonna have a word." Troy said, then walked away.

"Remind me to kick that prick's ass when we get out of here, baby." I said.

"Will do." She said.

We then got up and then walked over to where the others were just as Carver, Tavia, and a few other guards stepped into the yard and faced us.

Carver was silent for a moment as he looked at us, then he spoke. "There's been increased walker activity along the fence, so be mindful when outside the walls. The herd's moved a little closer as of this morning, but that still doesn't necessarily mean we'll be hit."

I looked at Anne to see her rolling her eye, making me stifle a snicker.

"Know that we're monitoring the situation. Now, there are some folks that might be sore about what happened… and how things went…"

Tess, Bec and I glared at him hatefully when those words left his mouth.

"Well, that's all in the past now. Some of you are new to our community. Some of you are members who went astray. But know that you can find redemption here… forgiveness… by proving your worth through what will undoubtedly be hard work."

I snarled under my breath. Like you're one to talk about forgiveness and redemption.

"Reggie, you're nearly back in. Keep following the path and we'll welcome you back with open arms." He told Reggie. "Let Reggie be an example to you all. Salvation is available, but it must be earned… Chris, Tess, and Emily, my children, since they ran away also, will have to EARN back my trust, just like you all… Anne, you have also gone astray, but you can find forgiveness from me through the work that we will have you do. If you want salvation back, you will have to earn it…"

I scoffed quietly. _"We will find no salvation from this hellhole."_ I thought to myself.

I drown out the sound of his voice by remembering the revelation from last night. I then stopped thinking about it when I saw Sarah talking with Clementine. A feeling of fear began to grow in me.

"I was so tired…" I heard Sarah say.

"Pay attention."

"OK, yeah. Sounds good. I just thought it was nice to finally-"

"Carlos!" Carver snapped. We all froze.

"Yes?"

"You're child needs some correction."

I wasn't happy with the tone that carried when he said that last word, so I decided to be ready to intervene.

Carlos sighed as I walked to Sarah. "I'm sorry… Sarah, a-apologize to Mr. Carver." He told his daughter. She looked down at her feet. "I… I'm sorry, sir…" She said meekly, but I knew Carver wasn't satisfied.

I looked to see him frowning. "No, no… that ain't gonna cut it. I can't have this kind of behavior on your first day of reform. You discipline her now, Carlos." He ordered.

"H-How do you propose that I-"

"One good smack across the mouth should do it. It'll make her think twice before opening it again." He replied while crossing his arms. "Go on, we'll wait."

I looked at Tess to see her nod her head. We both then walked to Sarah, and placed our arms in front of her.

"Guess what, you little shit: You do anything to make him hurt her, you'll have me to be afraid of." I said, making Carver glare at me.

"Get out of the way." He barked.

"Over my dead body." I barked back.

"I… I'm not sure that with my hand I could-" Carlos started before Carver cut him off.

"Well, that's why you've got two hands, Carlos. Come on, and not some 'namby-pamby' thing. A good, hard smack! Otherwise, Troy will do it for ya. I don't think you want that. He can be… overzealous. Is that the word?" He asked Troy. The latter nodded. "If it means that I'll slap the shit out of her, then yeah." Troy confirmed.

I snarled. "It's like I said back at the lodge: You take joy in torture, you snarling bastard." I said.

"It was my fault!" Clementine said, helping me and my sister defend Sarah. Troy scowled. "Hey! No one's fuckin' talking to you." He growled, but Carver held his hand up, silencing him.

"Unless you want what she's about to get, I'd pipe down, missy." I hissed at him for that.

"I'll take the punishment." I said, making everyone look at me in surprise.

"No, you won't. Now, you and your half-sister better get out of the way."

"Like I'm gonna listen to the man who was never my father."

Anne and Nick came to the two of us. We reluctantly walked with them and stood next to Evonne. Carlos closed his eyes sadly before turning to Sarah.

"I-I'm sorry, Dad. I'm sorry…"

"Close your eyes, honey. It's only going to sting for a second." Carlos gently said. Sarah obliged and shut her eyes tightly as we all looked on in horror.

"DO IT!" Carver ordered.

Carlos reluctantly slapped Sarah across the face, resulting in her hurtling towards the ground.

"Jesus Christ…" I whispered as I knelt beside her. Anne covered her mouth in shock. Chase growled and clenched his fists. Sarah sat there, holding her cheek and whimpering. Carlos was horrified by what he had done. He stepped up to her. "I'm sorry, Sarah-"

"Stop!" Carver snapped. "You're not coddling that girl anymore! Let her sit there and think about what she's done."

He frowned at my attempts to comfort Sarah. I, in turn, gave him my icy cold glare.

"That's the problem with you, boy. Always-"

"YOU SHUT UP RIGHT NOW!" I furiously cut him off. He simply frowned as he looked to Troy.

"Troy, get Carlos to his post. Everyone else should have their assignments. It's time to get to work."

Troy looked down at Sarah. "God damn, you really knocked the shit out of her, Doc!" I simply glared at him as I wrapped my arms around Sarah.

Carver looked over his shoulder. "Everyone get to work!"

I stood up after Sarah didn't want me to help her up. I looked at Anne and saw she had a look of sympathy for the poor girl.

We reached out to her, but Tavia stepped up to us and Clem. "You three are working in the armory. Follow me." She ordered.

She turned around and walked out of the yard. I looked at Anne to see her frown at her back as we followed her.

"Soil coming up!"

WHOA!

Two large bags of soil suddenly fell and landed just inches away from the three of us. Anne yelped in surprise and jumped back slightly. We looked up, seeing the woman from last night on the roof looking down at us.

"Oh shit…" She muttered.

"Goddamn this thing!" We heard a man growl.

"Chris! Clementine! Anne!" Tavia called. The three of us quickly ran to her and followed her down the hall.

As we were walking down the hall, I spotted a girl with braided light black hair, a grey denim jacket, a grey T-shirt, black skinny jeans, and white boots smiling at me.

I smirked. Now there's a face I haven't seen in a long time.

"Hey, Chris." She said to me.

"Hey, Verity." I greeted.

Verity was one of the few kids that didn't pick on me. She helped my sisters keep the bullies away from me. She's also the one who called the paramedics when she found me bleeding to death that night.

Anne looked at me and rose an eyebrow.

"Oh right. Anne, this is Verity Clinton, the girl who ended up saving my life. Verity, this is my girlfriend, Anne." I introduced, resulting in the girls shaking hands. Verity then turned her attention back to me.

"I heard you, your half-sisters, Carlos and the others were brought back." She said.

I nodded. "Yeah…"

Verity noticed Anne and I had sad looks on our faces.

"What happened?" She asked.

"My dick of a father forced Carlos to slap his daughter, Sarah, not too long ago." I replied. She went wide eyed. "Really?" She asked, and my girlfriend nodded.

After that, the three of us kept following Tavia. We reached our destination and Tavia opened the door leading into the armory.

"Go on inside. Bonnie's waiting inside. Along with another prisoner."

The three of us stepped inside and Tavia closed the door. I looked to see a with walnut brown hair, a white track jacket, a black T-shirt, grey jeans, grey running shoes, and black fingerless sitting in one of five chairs.

Oh… it's HIM…

"Well, look who's come back." He said, earning a glare from me.

"Nice to see you, too, Patrick." I greeted sarcastically.

Bonnie gestured for the three of us to sit down. "Someone's gonna have to sit between me and him, cuz if I sit next to him, a fight will break out."

Anne sat in between me and Patrick.

"Hey… I guess you three are starting your day with me. We're loading magazines." Bonnie said. I leaned towards Anne's ear. "I'll try to not unload one into that prick's chest." I whispered, causing her to look at Patrick, who cleared his throat on purpose.

"Right. Clementine and Anne, That's Patrick Hartnell. Patrick, the girl on your right in Clementine and the girl between us is my girlfriend, Anne." I reluctantly introduced. Patrick suddenly smiled.

"Yes, you can have Verity, Patrick." I answered his unspoken question. The three females looked at me with raised eyebrows. I sighed with annoyance. "Verity had a crush on me, Patrick has a crush on her." I explained.

"I… suppose I owe you an apology." Bonnie said.

"What do you mean?" I asked her.

"I wasn't truthful when I came across y'all back at the lodge… and I was shown a kindness I never would've expected from a group of strangers. But… now folks are dead… and I can't help but feel that I'm to blame… but the plan was for no one to get hurt. I truly believe that was the intent. At least it was mine going in…"

"Don't blame yourself." I said.

"He's right. It was just a bad situation… that got worse. A lot of people are to blame." Clem agreed.

"That's big of you both, but… I know what I done… but I wanted you to know that I regret my part in all of this."

I saw the sincerity in her eyes, and knew she meant what she said.

"I apologize… which don't account for much, but it's all I can offer right now."

"Bonnie… you really mean that?" Anne asked. She nodded. "Yes, Anne, I truly mean it. I swear, I regret my part in this…"

She was silent for a moment. "So, how was your first night in the yard? I know it ain't so comfortable, but it's safe… which is more than I can say about a lot of places out there…"

I looked at Anne to see her in thought.

"You mean my first night in prison…" Clementine muttered.

"Don't think of it that way… think of it as more of a work release." Bonnie suggested.

Clem rose an eyebrow. "Didn't they do those in prisons?"

Bonnie and I chuckled. "I don't really know. I've never been to prison." She admitted before looking at the three of us. "Don't tell no one. Tryin' to keep a tough reputation."

Anne smiled a little while I quietly chuckle. She's not that bad…

"I was supposed to go… when Luke and Carlos and all them left. I was planning on leavin' too."

"Really?" Anne asked as I rose an eyebrow. "Yeah… when Luke approached me about it, I thought he was crazy. I mean, we're safe here. We got power. We got food. And Bill… he wasn't always like this…"

"Well, what didn't you leave if you were gonna?" I asked.

She sighed. "If I'm being honest… I guess I chickened out. I justified not goin' and change something that's broken than start all over. Take this situation with the herd… that's the type of thing that rips a community apart. Bill keeps things in line… he's got a lot of this stuff figured out. I don't know… I guess I just wanted to be somewhere safe for a while."

Anne frowned. "Nobody's safe here with Carver around. Look at what happened to Coleen." She said. I sniffled as I remembered the day he left my mother to die. Anne started rubbing my back soothingly.

"You're safe if you stay on his good side." Bonnie said.

"I don't think he has one anymore. He never helped me when I was…" I cut myself off as I looked away, trying to hide my tears. Anne pulled me toward her and I cried into her chest a little bit.

"I would if I knew where it was." Clem said.

"I mean, it ain't easy keeping a group this big fed and protected. I don't envy that position. Figure that'd make someone stressed." Bonnie said. "I'm not defending what he did. That was…" She paused before she sighed. "I'm alive because of him. That's just a fact. And Chris, I am so sorry about your ma. I really am."

I looked up to her, while still keeping my head on my girlfriend's chest and nodded, accepting her apology.

"Sounds like you really respect Carver." Clem inquired.

"It's not that. I just have sympathy for the man… even though sometimes it's hard for him to do the same."

I finally stopped crying and pulled away from Anne as Bonnie grabbed another magazine and started loading it. "Luke had about how things should go, but they didn't line up with what Bill was thinking… they butted heads, then Bec started showing, and that only made things worse. Maybe Luke was right about him. I wish he was around, but… I just hope that he's safe."

I nodded in agreement. "So do I…"

Just then, Bonnie's radio came on.

_"Hey Bonnie, is Chris, Anne, and the girl still down there? I need to come and get them."_ Tavia said. I sneered. God, I hate that bitch…

Bonnie picked up the radio and pressed the button. "Yeah, they're here." She confirmed.

_"OK, I'll be right there."_

Tavia then hung up. Bonnie then stood up. "Oh, I almost forgot! I grabbed these for you three." She said as she walked over to a box and pulled out three jackets. One was a sky blue jacket with a rainbow on the front and the other two were leather jackets. One red, one black.

I smiled. "No. Fucking. Way!" I said as I slipped the red jacket on me. Anne took the black jacket. Clementine put on the rainbow jacket and zipped it up. Bonnie smiled and put a hand on her hip. "Huh? What do you think? I found those at the lodge y'all were at." She explained.

"It's cool. I like it." Clem said with a smile.

Bonnie smiled as well. "Well, I'm glad. Thought it was pretty cute."

"Hey Clem, do I look cool in this or what?" Anne asked with a grin as she gestured to her jacket. Clementine smiled lightly. "Yeah." She said with a nod.

"I agree. You look stylish, sweetie." I agreed with a smile.

"Just give me a pair of sunglasses and I'm ready to go!" Anne joked. She, Bonnie, and Clem laughed until they saw a frown on my face.

Anne eventually smirked as she admired my jacket. "I love the color. It matches your eyes, baby." She said. I smiled too. "Nice save, baby." I said. I then went back to admiring my jacket. At one point, I looked at Patrick to see him smirk.

"He has eyes? I thought he was blind." He joked, and I was trying my hardest not to strangle him, until I came up with an idea.

"Okay, if you don't want me to help you get a date with Verity, be that way." I retorted. He went wide eyed.

"My bad, dude." He apologized, and I smirked.

"That's what I thought. But seriously, if you want me to help you win Verity's love, let me know."

He quickly nodded his head. "Okay, you don't want help from a guy to win her heart. You'll need a girl to help with that." Anne said.

"Okay, then. Good luck, baby." I challenged, holding my hand out. She smirked and shook it.

"Oh, Anne, I also grabbed this for ya." Bonnie told her as she walked to another table. Anne watched her and rose an eyebrow as she pulled something out from behind a table and walked back over to us with it. Her eye widened at the item she carried. It was…

"MY GUITAR!" She gasped as Bonnie handed it to her. Bonnie smiled. "Yep. I knew how much you liked this thing, so I grabbed it when no one was looking before we left the lodge." She explained.

Anne smiled as she slung her guitar over her shoulder. "Thank you, Bonnie. You don't know how much this means to me…"

"Don't mention it. By the way, Chris, I picked up a little something for you, too." Bonnie said to me. I rose an eyebrow as she walked to another table. She picked something up and then walked back to us. I stood awestruck by what I saw in her hands. It was…

"MY SAIS!" I said as she handed them to me. "Yeah. I knew how much you loved these bad boys, so I snatched them after I grabbed Anne's guitar. I stashed into my jacket." Bonnie explained.

I spun the Sais around for a bit before I placed them in the pockets in my new jacket. "Thanks, Bonnie. You have no idea how much this means to me…"

"No problem." She said to me before turning her attention to Clementine. "You better watch yourself. I think some folks might be jealous of that cool jacket of yours."

Then, of course, Tavia just HAD to ruin the moment.

"Oh, there you are. What's with the ugly jacket?"

You're one to talk, bitch…

"Tavia!" Bonnie sighed.

"What?"

Bonnie shook her head. "Nevermind. I'll see you three later."

"Okay. See ya, Bonnie." I said as Clem, Anne, and I followed Tavia out of the armory.

We then walked through a door that led to the roof.

"Follow me. Come on." Tavia ordered. We followed her to what I presumed was one of the greenhouses Reggie was talking about last night. I looked at Anne to see her looking over the edge, seeing how high we were.

Remembering she hates heights, I walked over to her.

"We'll be fine, honey." I assured her as I wrapped my arms around her to calm her down.

She nodded and we walked away from the edge. Tavia opened the door to the greenhouse and we step inside with Clem.

"Stay in here for a minute. I'm gonna radio down and find out what you're doing. Don't touch anything." Tavia said before shutting the door.

I took a look around the greenhouse and I was amazed by the very sight. There were fresh plants everywhere! Some even with edible food!

I heard whimpering and recognize the voice.

Sarah…

I looked to my left and saw her huddled in a corner, whimpering as she rocked back and forth. Anne, Clem and I walked over to her and knelt by her side.

"Hey, Sarah…" Anne greeted softly. We all could see a red hand imprint on her chest.

I opened my arms for her and she slowly leaned into them and wrapped her arms around me.

"My Dad's never hit me before…" Sarah spoke as she pulled away from me and gingerly placed a hand on her cheek. "Even when I was really bad… he never hit me."

"It wasn't your father, honey. It was the man I used to call 'Dad'." I said, looking to the two other girls for support.

"Yeah. Carlos didn't want to, Sarah. Carver made him." Anne agreed.

"He's the bad guy, not your dad." Clem added. "So, in a weird way, Carver's the one who hit you… not your dad."

Sarah thought about that for a minute. "I guess so… well, then Carver hit me super hard… cause it still hurts like crazy."

She then looked at us. "Thanks… for trying to help."

"Of course, Sarah." I said.

Clem and Anne smiled for a brief moment. "I don't know why people have to be so mean. Even when I'm really mad, I still don't wanna hurt anyone…"

Just then, Tavia stepped in with Reggie and Verity. "Don't mess this up." Tavia told Reggie.

"Yeah, I get it." Reggie said.

"Reggie's in charge here, okay? Listen to him carefully."

"Yep. No problem, Tavia."

Tavia then shut the door. Verity scowled. "God, I hate that bitch…" She muttered. I smirked. Nice one, Ver…

Suddenly, the door opened back up and Tavia looked at us. "Someone say something?"

"No." All of us said at once in surprise. She bought it and closed the door.

Reggie then turned to Clem, Sarah, Verity, Anne, and I. "Okay, we gotta do a good job, guys. The camp is counting on us. Come on, I'll show you what to do. It's super easy." He said as he led us to over to a table. "Pick up a pair of these shears."

We obliged, but Sarah hesitated before picking hers up.

"OK, so we're picking these berries, right? Just pick them, put them in the basket. It's pretty simple. While you're at it, if you see any dead branches, take those shears, cut them off, and stack them neatly for composting. You got it?"

"So… we're basically gardening?" Verity asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah." Reggie nodded. "Something like that."

"My step-mom and I used to tend to our garden." I piped up.

We all then walked away from Sarah's table. Reggie looked at Sarah before looking at Anne and Clem. "Hey, so… is she gonna be okay? Cause what happened was down there… that was straight fucked up. I don't want her freaking out getting me in trouble."

"We talked to her, Reggie. I think she's okay." Anne told him.

He nodded. "Good… good. Cause I'm awful at that kind of stuff. Look, Bill's had it out for me ever since I helped those guys escape, so I gotta concentrate on my work."

He was silent for a moment before he suddenly patted Clementine on the head. I snickered as I saw the unamused look on her face.

Reggie took a step back. "That was awkward… I won't do that again. I'm gonna go work now." Reggie said before he patted Anne on the head. "See ya, Raggedy Anne."

I sighed with sadness when he passed by me. "What's wrong, Chris Kyle?" He asked me.

"I was just remembering what I dealt with as a kid." I replied, fighting tears already.

Reggie rose an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

I stiffened. "I don't wanna talk about it."

Reggie placed his hand on my shoulder. "Come on, buddy. You know you can-" He started before I cut him off.

"I SAID I DON'T WANNA TALK ABOUT IT!" I snapped.

Reggie looked surprised and stepped back a little. "I'm sorry I asked." He said.

"No, Reggie. I'm the one who should be sorry. It's just that when I was a kid, I… I was constantly being bullied." I confessed.

He went wide eyed. I nodded my head. "It may seem hard to believe, but it's true. Ask Tess or even Verity here. They knows better than anyone."

"It's true." Verity said.

My hand subconsciously went to my arm.

Reggie was about to roll up the sleeve when I jerked back. "No, please don't." I pleaded, drawing the attention of the other girls. I sighed.

"What is it, baby?" Anne asked me.

"Why don't you wanna roll up your sleeve?" Clem asked.

I sighed. "Because of…" I started as I reluctantly took off my jacket and rolled up my sleeve, stopping at the shoulder, revealing a scar going from my wrist all the way to my shoulder. "… this."

Everyone looked at me with looks of shock, Anne's mixed with anger. "Who did that to you, sweetie?" She calmly asked.

"Amanda Harris. She and my ex-girlfriend, Kate Walker, grabbed me by my arms and legs and dragged me down into an alley. I ended up on my back as Amanda used her legs to keep mine still, while Kate held my arms down. Amanda snatched my right arm, rolled the sleeve up to my shoulder, pulled out her switch blade, and dragged the knife down my arm, stopping at the wrist. Verity heard me screaming and ran to help me. That's when I ended up in the hospital." I explained.

We all then got back to work after that. A while later, Verity, Anne, and I finished our work. "Finally." Verity groaned. I chuckled at her. "What's so funny?" She asked.

"Well, I enjoyed doing this. It reminded me of when my mom and I tended to our garden." I replied.

We all turned to Sarah's table to see that she finished her work too.

"Good job, Sarah." I praised.

"Yeah. This isn't that hard." Clem said.

"I know, I'm just afraid that I'll make a mistake…"

I placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's not the end of the world if you do." I assured her. "Just keep going."

Just then, Carver came in. Like I needed to see his face right now.

Reggie turned to Clem's table and went wide eyed. "You didn't do any of your work, Clem!" He said.

We all then went wide eyed when we saw he was right.

Carver came in. "Just checking in… seeing how the new girls and my disappointing son are working out."

I inwardly scoffed. Like you're one to talk about disappointment when it comes to family.

He noticed Clem's unfinished work and frowned. "Reggie…" He began, dangerously calm. "Yeah, Bill?" Reggie nervously asked. "What the fuck happened here?" Carver asked.

"Look, Bill, they're new, and me and my arm, it's not easy- I have one arm-"

"Shut up, shut up, shut the fuck up." Carver demanded. "You better have an explanation for this. And I mean now."

My eyes widened behind my sunglasses as Reggie tried to come up with something to say. Carver then cut him off. "Sounds like you're about to give me an excuse when I asked for an explanation."

"Dammit, Dad, give the man a break. Put yourself in his position. If you had one arm, don't you think it'd be hard to get the work done?" I asked. He just glared at me. "I don't think I was talkin' to you."

"We'll get it done. Just give us some time-"

"It's my fault. I helped Sarah do her work." Clementine piped up. Carver just shook his head. "Nah, this ain't your fault…"

I tensed as Carver frowned. "We talked about this, Reggie, didn't we? But, you just don't get it, do you?"

"Get what? I… I…"

Carver crossed his arms. "Why don't you go wait outside? Reggie and I have a few things to talk about."

"Reggie-" Anne started, but he cut her off. "Anne, go. I'll be okay…" Reggie told her.

"Come on, honey." I said as I wrapped my arms around her and we stepped out of the greenhouse with Clementine, Verity, and Sarah. I noticed Sarah walking to the edge of the roof, rubbing her arms. I let go of Anne and walked to the raven haired girl. I wrapped my arms around her.

"It's okay, honey." I said as the others took notice.

"Sarah…?" Anne asked slowly as they approached the two of us. Clem reached out to her. "Are you okay?" She asked.

Suddenly, the greenhouse door slammed open. Reggie stumbled out as Carver stormed towards him, backing him to the edge of the roof.

"I gave you plenty of chances!" Carver snapped.

"NO, NO, NO, NO" PLEASE, BILL! NO! NO! PLEASE!" Reggie pleaded before Carver grabbed the front of his shirt.

I knew what Carver was gonna do, I grabbed his arm, but he pushed me to the ground.

"NO!" Clem, Anne, Verity, and I exclaimed as we tried to get to our friend, but it was too late.

"REGGIE!" I shouted as Carver threw Reggie off the edge of the building. We all heard a sickening splat, which meant only thing. We looked over the edge to see Reggie's body with a pool of blood forming around it.

"Jesus Christ…" Verity groaned at the sight. Anne covered her mouth in horror.

"Weakness… incompetence… it puts us all at risk." Carver said as he crossed his arms. "And it won't be tolerated. You think about that the next time you're asked to do something."

I felt my anger intensify as I clenched my fists. Anne looked at Sarah, who was staring at her feet in shock.

"You four get downstairs. Bonnie is down there. Go!" He ordered. I turned my icy cold glare to him as we headed to the door that went back inside. I looked back to see Carver talking to Sarah. As the door closed and we took a few steps away from it, I felt my rage building inside of me. I ground my teeth as I looked back at the door. After a second, I finally let my rage out with the four simple words-

"**DAMN YOU TO HELL!"**

**That's chapter fourteen. I would like to thank I heart Lyoko for letting me use Patrick Hartnell and Verity Clinton. Review and I'll post more chapters.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15: Loss of a friend, and Gaining a New One**

**Chris's POV**

Anne had her arms wrapped around me as I started crying while the two of us, Verity, and Clem walked downstairs.

Reggie was… Carver had murdered him. And there was nothing I could do.

I looked at Anne. "What are we gonna tell Tess, Em, and Bec, baby?" I asked through sobs.

She started rubbing my back. "Shh. Shh. I'm here, baby. We'll be okay." She assured me.

We soon saw Bonnie, Emily, and Patrick were standing there with a woman with short brown hair holding buckets filled with nails and bolts. Anne and I recognized her as Shel, another of the guards of this hellhole Carver calls a community.

Bonnie looked over her shoulder and noticed us.

"Oh, hey." She greeted as she stood up. Shel noticed us. "Chris and Anne? Haven't seen you two in a long time." She mused as she smiled.

"Yep." We said at the same time.

They handed us the three buckets. "So, they want you to guys to run some supplies out to the guys workin' on the expansion. Real simple, just take these over to 'em." Bonnie explained.

Emily smiled. "Those jackets look good on you guys." She commented. Bonnie smiled and crossed her arms. "I don't know what Tavia's talkin' about…" She said.

Clem looked down. Bonnie noticed and her smile faded. "What's wrong, guys?" She asked.

We were silent for a minute. "You guys look like you've seen a ghost." Shel said. I ran into Emily's arms.

"R-Reggie's dead, Emmy." I said tearfully. All four of them widened their eyes. "What? What are you talking about, man?" Patrick asked me.

"How? Was he-?" Emily asked.

"Murdered. By Carver." I replied.

"Maybe it was an accident." Patrick said, making Verity shake her head.

"It wasn't an accident. It was straight up murder." She said.

Emily joined me in crying. We then walked away.

* * *

**Anne's POV**

As Chris and Emily walked away, I felt terrible for the two of them. Reggie was dead. I figured out they were going to find Tess to break the news to her.

"Listen to me, girls. Just take this stuff over there and come back." Bonnie said quickly. "Just… be safe, OK? Now ain't the time to be callin' attention to yourselves."

"I've got to go find out what happened." Shel said.

"I'll go see if I can give Chris and Emily some comfort." Patrick said. I assumed he wanted to offer his condolences to Chris in order to earn his friendship.

Bonnie walked over to a door and opened it. Verity, Clem, and I stepped out the door, and we were outside. "Hey, Troy! Verity, Anne, and Clem's just gonna take some nails down to them boys!" She called up to Troy, who stood on the roof.

"Alright!" He called down. Bonnie then looked at us. "I'm gonna go try and find Chris and Emily. Go on." She whispered, then shut the door. I heard Verity gasp and looked over my shoulder. Reggie's corpse was just inches away from us.

I finally turned away, unable to take the sight. Verity gagged, which told me she wasn't used to seeing a corpse.

"Hey! That ain't your concern!" Troy snapped at us. "Get that stuff to them boys! Just follow the cables."

Like hell it's none of our concern! Reggie was my friend!

Growling under my breath, we followed the cables. We stopped and looked at a makeshift wall, which had walkers pounding on the other side.

"I'm not comfortable being so close to those things." Verity admitted.

"Nobody is…" I told her before we stepped into an abandoned store.

"I ain't nobody's laborer! Fuck that!"

Now what?

"Boys, please." A female voice spoke up.

I turned my head to see my mom trying to separate Kenny and Mike, the guy from last night.

"No, Evonne! Let 'em do this shit themselves if it's so goddamn important!" Kenny barked as he held Mike against the wall.

"Get your fuckin' hands off me!" Mike snapped.

"You ain't gonna force me to do this bullshit!" Kenny growled.

"I said get your hands off of me!" Mike repeated.

"Or what? You gonna tell on me?"

"I'm trying to help you, asshole."

"Boys, please stop." My mom pleaded.

We dropped our stuff and ran to them. "Hey, you two! Knock it off!" Verity snapped. I looked at my mom. "Mom, what's going on here?!" I asked. "Why are you guys fighting?!" Clementine asked.

"This sonuvabitch keeps testing me!" Kenny replied.

"Hey, I just want to get this work done!" Mike shot back.

"We all do, Mike. But we can do it without being at each other's throats." Mom said.

Suddenly, a board blocking the window slid down because of the fight, revealing walkers pounding on the glass.

Aw shit…

The walkers pounded on the glass one more time, and the window shattered, and the walkers started pouring in.

"OH SHIT!" Verity shouted as we all backed away from the window. "Grab something!" Kenny yelled as he grabbed two hammers and handed one to my mom. Clem grabbed a plank of wood, but I looked away when I saw two walkers coming for me and Verity. I looked at her and smirked.

"How about we show these two lame-brains some girl power?" I asked, and she smirked. "I'm on board." She said, then grabbed a crowbar while I grabbed a screwdriver.

"Okay, Anne. I'll take the one on the left! You take the one of the right!" She said, and I nodded.

She swung the blunt end of the crowbar at her target, while I moved to the left and then stabbed the walker in the head. I then looked at Verity to see her swing twice at her walker. On the third swing, the walker died.

I turned my head to the right and saw a third walker coming towards me.

SHIT!

I picked up a hammer and slammed the claw end into the walker's head. I slammed it into its skull again and then it died.

WAY too close.

"Where's Clementine?" Kenny asked as my mom killed the last walker in the room.

All of a sudden, Troy stepped out of the back room with Clementine behind him. "Making me save your ass…" He grumbled.

Kenny sighed with relief. "Oh, thank God you're okay!"

Troy rolled his eyes. "Alright, enough mushy shit! You get back inside right fuckin' now! I'm sure they've got shit for you to do." He snapped at Verity, Clementine, and I. "Now! You think I'm fucking around?! Now I gotta sit here and babysit you assholes! Can't do a simple fuckin' patch job without me crackin' the whip?!"

I glared at him as Verity and I stepped out first.

"Man, I hate that prick so much..." Verity muttered.

"You and me both..."

She looked at me and smirked. "I gotta say… you handled those walkers pretty damn good."

"… You weren't too bad yourself."

* * *

Verity and I walked down a hall, with her telling me she'd ask Patrick if he would like to go out with her, when someone drew our attention.

"ANNE!"

I turned around and saw Chris, Emily, and Tess running to us.

"I heard what happened to Reggie. How did it happen? Is he-?" Tess asked.

"Murdered. By Carver. He pushed Reggie off the roof." I replied.

"Oh my God…" She said, then embraced me.

I rubbed her back soothingly and closed my eye sadly. Reggie was good friends with Chris, Tess, and Emily.

Tess pulled away from me and sniffled. "C-Come on… we have to get back to the yard..."

I sighed and nodded before the five of us walked back to the yard, with me holding Chris's hand.

* * *

We sat around the campfire as we ate our dinner.

"So, he just pushed him off the roof?!" Chase asked.

Chris took a bite of beans and nodded sadly. "That fuckin' monster…" Chase growled.

Chris looked at Tess and Emily. "I tried all I could to stop him, Tessie." He said, earning a nod from Tess.

"I know you did, little bro." She said.

Bec shed a few tears, hearing that Reggie was dead.

I closed my eye. I'd never hear him call me 'Raggedy Anne' again.

"He was the one who started calling me 'Raggedy Anne'…" I muttered. "I miss him already…"

Chris placed his hand on my shoulder and I rested my head on his shoulder.

We were silent for a few minutes. After that, Chris, Tess, and Emily walked to a corner, while my mom saw my guitar.

"I didn't know you could play, baby." She said and I blushed.

"Y-Yeah, I can." I admitted.

"Why don't you let us hear something?" Clem asked.

I nodded, placed my guitar on my lap, closed my eye and strummed my guitar and started singing Don't You Worry Child.

* * *

**Chris's POV**

As Anne was singing, Tess, Emily, and I did a little reconnecting.

I sighed. "You guys remember that camping trip Dad took us on?" I asked.

They nodded. "Yeah." Tess said.

"I remember you caught my fish." Emily said, and I looked at her.

"Hey, it wasn't my fault you thought the salmon was on your line." I defended.

"I also remember we got a little booze in us." Tess said.

I nodded. "Yeah. One of the few times he was okay with us drinking." I said.

Suddenly, everyone gathered back by the campfire, making us walk over to them.

Anne saw us coming and ushered me to sit beside her.

"What's going on, y'all?" I asked.

"Kenny's proposing we make a lotta sound to draw that herd to us and use it to escape." Evonne replied.

Tess, Emily, and I went wide eyed. "Another suicidal plan?" I asked.

"Look, we all know what happened this morning! I don't know what that sonuvabitch is gonna do next!" Kenny said.

I gritted my teeth. He'll die before he can do what he's gonna do next!

Anne sensed my anger building and put an arm around my shoulder, calming me down.

"So you wanna ring the dinner bell for a herd of walkers to show up? How good is that?" Mike asked.

"I'm with Mike on this one, y'all." Jennifer said, voicing my thoughts.

Chase nodded. "Kenny, I gotta say that that is the worst plan I've ever heard of…"

"This place'll be chaos when that thing hits! No one will be paying attention to us. And that's when we go. That's our opening! We just gotta figure out a way to draw 'em to us." Kenny said as Clem sat down. Bec looked at her. "Your friend here wants to get us killed by a herd of lurkers before Bill can do it." She sighed. Kenny frowned and looked at her. "What is it with you?"

"That's what it sounds like to me." She shrugged.

"You know that's not what he's saying, but… it does sound dangerous." Sarita said.

"This shit is all dangerous!" Kenny snapped.

"Kenny! Do not speak to me like that." Sarita scolded.

"Sorry…"

"Maybe Luke could help us." Clem chimed in. "He's outside. He wants a remote to help keep an eye on the guards."

I nodded. "I'm with that plan."

Clementine rose an eyebrow. "You guys know about Luke?"

Anne nodded. "Yeah. He flagged us down not too long ago and told us his plan. He mentioned he talked to you." She confirmed.

"If Luke can tell us what's going on with the guards, we can use that as a good time to escape." Verity said. "That sounds reasonable." Sarita agreed.

"Who know when that'll be." Kenny sighed. "There was a girl back at Crawford that used bells to send walkers all over the city. We just need something really loud." He said.

"Well, the PA system that Dad uses is pretty loud." I pointed out.

"There's some speakers outside the building… pointed towards the parking lot." Mike explained. "I saw 'em when we were walking out to the work. Troy's always standing next one of them. There are a few of 'em on the roof."

I nodded in agreement. "Tess, Emily, and I noticed them every time we came back from a supply run." I pointed out, looking at my half-sisters to see them nod.

"I saw the controls… they're in Carver's office." Clementine explained.

"She's right." Emily muttered.

"It's all controlled from Bill's office. There's a switch that'll turn it on." Bec explained.

"How do you know that?" Rebecce asked.

I sighed. "Bec and Tess used to help make announcements back then." I explained, earning a nod from Tess. "I had it flipped on once… luckily there wasn't much around at the time to hear it, but it was plenty loud though…" Bec remembered.

Kenny smiled. "That's perfect! We just gotta get into his office! Why didn't you say something like that sooner?"

"Cause it doesn't change anything. This ain't a discussion about how to do it, it's a discussion about whether it's stupid. And it's still stupid. The best thing to do is get Luke the radio and wait for an opening." I said.

Kenny looked at me and sighed. "You're real difficult to deal with sometimes…"

"Kenny…" Sarita said.

I shook my head. "No, that's alright, you ain't exactly a peach either."

"Luke's in no shape to help us. You wanna put our faith in THAT guy's hands? It's not happening."

Anne leaned towards my ear. "Luke DID look tired last time we saw him." She whispered.

"We should get Luke a radio." Clementine said. "If we do, he can tell us what's going on and find us a way to get out."

"OK, I can go with that." Kenny agreed. "So we get that turd a radio, he keeps us posted on the walkers and the guards. We fire up the PA thing and bring the walkers to roll over this place." He planned.

"And then what? What do you plan to do next?" Anne asked, voicing my thoughts.

"Get some guns and shoot our way out. I don't know, whatever we can! We improvise." Kenny told her.

"That's not a plan." Mike disagreed, earning a nod from me. "Mike's right. You don't plan to improvise." I said.

Bec looked at Kenny. "I've figured out what your problem is. You don't think stuff through. If the end of the plan is just to stroll through a herd of walkers, then you should know from the jump that there's no way it's gonna work."

"Actually…" A woman piped up, more specifically, the woman from earlier. She then started walking towards us. "I do it all the time."

I looked at her shocked. How in God's name is this chick still alive?!

"Now that is fucked up." Anne said.

Mike and I nodded in agreement. "First words I ever hear you say, and it's some crazy stupid shit." Mike said.

"Hush." Sarita whispered before she looked back up at the girl. "What do you mean exactly?"

"When you cover yourself in their smell… rub the walker guts all over you… they can't tell you apart from one of them." The girl explained. We all went wide eyed at this news.

"I don't know who's crazier now... you, or my twerp of a half-brother, who decimates herds of walkers to calm down." Tess said. I glared at her. "You, Anne, and Emily know I have a bad temper." I reminded her.

"Trust me, I've walked through herds before. It works. You just have to stay calm and make sure your good and covered." The girl said.

"How the hell do you stay calm when there's a herd of walking corpses around you that want to eat your flesh?!" Anne asked. "I'm with my girlfriend on that." I said.

"You seem to know what you're talking about…" Sarita observed.

"Lee figured that out." Clem chimed in.

I rose an eyebrow. Wasn't Lee the guy that looked after Clem when hell broke loose?

"What?" Kenny gasped.

"What do you mean, Clementine?" I asked curiously.

"It's how we got out of the Marsh House after he saved me. Lee covered me and we walked right through the herd." She said.

"Holy shit. Good one, Lee…" Kenny said with a smile.

"He must've been one smart guy." Anne said. Clem smiled slightly and nodded. "He was…"

Kenny stood up. "Alright! What're we waiting for? Let's get that stupid radio!"

"We still need a way to get into the stock room." Bec pointed out.

The girl nodded. "I got a plan for that, too. Come on, kid. Gonna need your help. You too, Sunglasses. And while we're at it, Bandana can help as well." She said as she walked past us. Kenny looked at the group. "Where the hell'd she come from?" He asked.

I growled at the nickname she gave me. I looked at Anne and saw her frown slightly.

"We have names, you know…" She grumbled.

The girl smirked. "Oh yeah? What are they?"

"Anne." She replied. "And this is my boyfriend, Chris." I nodded.

The girl smirked again and nodded. "Jane." She replied as the four of us reached the wall and looked up at the winch. "We just need to use the winch… they can just climb up from there. Then just drop into one of the skylights over the stockroom." Jane told us as she turned to me, Anne, and Clem. "There are shelves and stuff for you to land on, so… you probably won't fall to your death." She shrugged as the others approached.

"Great…" Clem said flatly.

Bec looked up at the winch. "That thing breaks all the time. Unless something's changed, it won't support much weight, let alone the weight of three people." She told us.

"Come on. Up and at 'em." Kenny said to Clem.

"Don't push them, Kenny…" Sarita warned.

"Thank you, Sarita." I said, seeing as I remembered I was a little scared of heights.

"They're our best bet. I mean that, you three." He told us.

I sighed and nodded. Anne nodded as well.

"Now or never, I guess." Clem said.

Kenny smiled. "That's my girl."

Verity stepped over to me. "Chris, please. Let Chase, Dylan, or Patrick do it. I don't want you to get hurt." She told me. I then remembered she always was worried about me.

"I'll be fine, Ver. Besides, Anne and I know the exact same skylight that leads to the stockroom. And we know how to be cunning." I reminded her. She just nodded. "O-OK… just be careful." She told me.

"I thought you two said you hated heights…?" Tess brought up. I glared at her while Anne looked at the winch. "It's not that high up…" She said slowly, then looked at her. "Watch my guitar for me, OK?" She asked my half-sister.

She smiled and nodded. "Be careful, you guys."

I nodded. "We will, Tessie." I said.

"We gotta get that rope down." Kenny said, then looked to Mike. "Mike, you wanna boost her up?"

He nodded. "Sure. Come on, kid." He said to Clem as he walked over to the winch.

"Don't let go." Clementine told him as he picked her up.

"I got you." He assured her. Anne and I watched her as she pulled the rope down. Once the hook hit the ground, Mike set her down.

"Okay, big guy. Here's what I'm thinking: You toss me to the winch and pull the girls up." I said, and he nodded. He then got into position and interlaced his fingers. As soon as I placed my foot in his hands, I felt myself lifted into the air, and grabbed the bottom step and started climbing.

I looked down and saw Clem and Anne place their feet on the hook and Mike then started lifting them up.

"Try to hurry, alright?" He requested. "I don't think they're the sharpest guards in the world, but they're no idiots either. They see that you three are not in your bunk, we're done for."

He ain't wrong… We'll have to be quick.

Suddenly, footsteps could be heard. Shit, that's gotta be Troy…

Mike's eyes widened as he heard the footsteps. "Shit, he's coming back!" He said before looking at the girls. "I gotta let you go. I can't stay here! Grab something!"

Anne and Clem grabbed the ladder and held on tightly. I looked down at them. "Let's make this quick." I whispered and they nodded in agreement. As we climbed over the fence, I looked out beyond the wall.

Jesus Christ…

There had to be at least a thousand walkers out there! They kept kicking up dust, but I knew there were a lot of them.

I then said the first that came to my mind-

"We are so fucked up."

**That's chapter fifteen. I'm so sorry it took me a long time to update this story. Schoolwork is being a pain in my ass. Anyway, y'all know the procedure.**


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